Srinagar, May 30, KDC: The police in Kashmir have registered an FIR against Indian Army personnel including three lieutenant colonels for allegedly entering Kupwara police station on Tuesday night and attacking the staff and officers present with ‘rifle butts, kicks, and sticks.’
An FIR accessed by KDC reads that the army personnel collectively and without any provocation, in the form of an unlawful assembly, severely attacked the staff and officers present at Police Station Kupwara with Rifle Butts, kicks, and sticks.
An FIR number 0121/2024 filed on May 28 at 21:40 hours shows that the army men have been booked under 11 sections of the Indian Penal Code including 307, attempting to murder, 186, voluntarily obstructing a public servant in the performance of their public duties, 332, intentionally harming a public servant while they are performing their duties, 342, wrongful confinement and 397, robbery or dacoity with an attempt to cause death or grievous hurt and 365 which deals with kidnapping.
The police have also booked them under Sections 7 and 25 of the Arms Act.
The Srinagar-based Defence spokesperson, in a statement to the media, said that the “minor differences” between the police and a territorial army unit on an operational matter have been “amicably resolved.”
“Reports of an altercation between police and army personnel and beating up therein of police personnel are misfounded and incorrect. Minor differences between the police personnel and a territorial army unit on an operational matter have been amicably resolved,” he told the media.
A purported CCTV footage accessed by News18 showed a scuffle taking place between the army and police inside the police station in Kupwara. Uniformed men with guns could be seen entering the police station and beating the policemen who were in civics. The footage shows further scuffle taking place when SHO Kupwara entered the police station.
The FIR reads that, “At around 21:40 hours a huge number of armed and uniformed personnel of 160 Territorial Army…upon being questioned regarding their arrival at PS Kupwara they collectively and without any provocation in the form of an unlawful assembly severely attacked the staff and officers present at Police Station Kupwara with Rifle Butts, kicks, and sticks.”
It says that the station house officer inspector Mohmmad Ishaq was also injured in the alleged attack. The allegation includes brandishing weapons and snatching the mobile phones of the injured police personnel.
The cops have also blamed the army unit for abducting head constable Ghulam Rasool, who according to sources was released later.
Sources in the police said that the army personnel from the Territorial Army were angry over the detention of their member by the police.
Pictures of injured policemen accessed by Kashmir Dot Com show injuries caused to the head, arm, and legs. They were treated at Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) in Srinagar and are stable.
The investigation will now be carried out by Deputy Superintendent of Police DAR Kupwara. (KDC)
