Jammu, Aug 31 - A 40-year-old man was shot dead by suspected militants in a mountainous village of Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir, police said Monday.

The militants raided the house of Ghulam Mohammad in Chenjar village of Kishtwar, 220 km north-east of Jammu, and killed him late Sunday night.

Superintendent of Police Kishtwar Haseeb Mughal said the militants fired at Ghulam Mohammad, a shopkeeper, from point blank range and killed him.

Mughal said a joint column of police and Army was immediately sent to the village. 'As the security forces approached the village they came under fire from militants hiding there,' he said.

The entire area has been cordoned off and security forces were planning an operation to catch the militants, he said.

'We don't have any idea about the group affiliation of the militants,' Mughal said.