Army clashes with copes in Kashmir: FIR registered

Srinagar: A group of 16 soldiers, including three Lt Colonels of the Territorial Army (TA), have been booked after allegedly invading Kupwara police station in Jammu and Kashmir and assaulting a policeman.

The incident happened at Kupwara police station on May 27 around 11.50 pm. The TA is a military reserve force of part-time volunteers who provides support services to the Indian Army. The army, however, said the issue was minor and differences between soldiers and policemen has been amicably resolved.

The FIR lodged by police says that a huge number of armed and uniformed personnel of the 160 TA unit led by three officers unauthorisedly entered the premises of Kupwara police station and without any provocation severely assaulted the staff and officers present at the police station with rifle butts and sticks.

“The information was immediately conveyed to senior police officers who rushed to the police station to rescue them. Upon seeing the arrival of police units and senior police officers the personnel and officers of the 160 Territorial Army led by Lieutenant Colonel Ankit Sood, Raju Chauhan and Nikhil brandished their weapons and snatched the mobile phones of the injured personnel and SHO police station Kupwara, Inspector Mohammad Ishaq. While fleeing they abducted Mohari's Head constable, Ghulam Rasool along with them and absconded from the spot," the FIR says.

The army men have been booked under sections 186 (obstructing public servants in discharge of public functions), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from duty), 307 (attempt to murder), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 147 (punishment for rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 392 (punishment for robbery), 397 (robbery, or dacoity, with attempt to cause death or grievous hurt) and 365 (kidnapping or abduction with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and the Arms Act. Police have launched investigations under DySP Syeed Peerzada Mujahidul Haq.

The raid by TA unit allegedly happened after police raided the residence of a territorial army jawan wanted in connection with an investigation. Indian Army, on May 29, said the reports of the altercation were “misfounded as minor differences between the police personnel and a Territorial Army unit on an operational matter have been amicably resolved”.

Source: IANS