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Protests erupt after soldiers kill student in Kashmir village
Protests erupt after soldiers kill student in Kashmir village
February 05, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Agencies/Srinagar
Thousands of protesters poured into the streets in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday after a student was shot dead by the army.
The new unrest raised memories of massive anti-India protests that rocked the state last summer in which at least 114 people were killed, most of them shot by security forces.
Manzoor Ahmad Magray, 21, a student, was killed by troops late Friday in Handwara, 80km north of the state’s summer capital Srinagar, police said.
Thousand of people marched in the streets yesterday to voice their anger, witnesses said.
Military spokesman J S Brar said in a statement that the army regretted Magray’s death but added that "troops fired after he paid no heed to their signal to stop.”
Handwara-based police superintendent MohameAslam said: "We have registered a murder case against the army in connection with the incident.”
"The situation is tense but under control,” Aslam said.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who was accused last year of allowing civilian unrest to spiral out of control, expressed his sorrow at the death.
"How can one not condemn the death of 21-year-old Manzoor at the hands of the army late last night? Another needless death in a bloody Kashmir,” Abdullah posted on micro-blogging site Twitter, adding he was making inquiries into the incident.
"I have been trying to understand the circumstances, lots of questions, but not enough answers at the moment,” Abdullah said in his post on Twitter.
Abdullah visited the family of the slain man and told them he shared their grief.
The chief minister flew to Handwara despite the bad weather to condole with the bereaved family.
The chief minister said a complaint has been registered by the police and promised a magisterial inquiry.
"The inquiry will be completed within a fortnight,” Abdullah said.
He also urged the family not to fall prey to the designs of those who could exploit the incident for political gains.
Police said the army had laid an ambush after getting intelligence about the alleged presence of militants in the area.
"Unfortunately, the villager walked into the ambush, and noticing suspicious movement, the troops opened fire, resulting in his death,” a police officer said.
Relatives of Magray rejected the army’s statement that the young man had refused to stop and charged that he had been killed "in cold blood.”
"Torture marks were visible on the body of Magray. There was only one bullet wound in the lower part of the leg,” said Shabir Ahmad, a relative.
The man worked for the Border Roads Organisation and his father is an activist of the ruling National Conference.
Earlier yesterday, hundreds of villagers blocked the road near Chogal village squatting on the road with the body of the slain villager.
After assurances from the authorities, the relatives agreed to bury Magray’s body.
The killing occurred on a day of sporadic protests in the Kashmir Valley over the murder of two teenaged sisters, allegedly by Lashkar-e-Taiba militants in the northern town of Sopore.
The intensity of a two-decade-old insurgency against Indian rule has fallen since New Delhi and Islamabad began a peace process in 2004 to resolve all disputes including Kashmir.
But civilian protests against India’s rule have increased.
Militant groups are known to kill people suspected of being police informers, while security forces have been accused by human rights organisations of extrajudicial killings and acting with impunity.
| Villagers carry the body of Manzoor Magray during his funeral at Chogal village in Kupwara’s Handwara town, north of Srinagar, yesterday |
The new unrest raised memories of massive anti-India protests that rocked the state last summer in which at least 114 people were killed, most of them shot by security forces.
Manzoor Ahmad Magray, 21, a student, was killed by troops late Friday in Handwara, 80km north of the state’s summer capital Srinagar, police said.
Thousand of people marched in the streets yesterday to voice their anger, witnesses said.
Military spokesman J S Brar said in a statement that the army regretted Magray’s death but added that "troops fired after he paid no heed to their signal to stop.”
Handwara-based police superintendent MohameAslam said: "We have registered a murder case against the army in connection with the incident.”
"The situation is tense but under control,” Aslam said.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who was accused last year of allowing civilian unrest to spiral out of control, expressed his sorrow at the death.
"How can one not condemn the death of 21-year-old Manzoor at the hands of the army late last night? Another needless death in a bloody Kashmir,” Abdullah posted on micro-blogging site Twitter, adding he was making inquiries into the incident.
"I have been trying to understand the circumstances, lots of questions, but not enough answers at the moment,” Abdullah said in his post on Twitter.
Abdullah visited the family of the slain man and told them he shared their grief.
The chief minister flew to Handwara despite the bad weather to condole with the bereaved family.
The chief minister said a complaint has been registered by the police and promised a magisterial inquiry.
"The inquiry will be completed within a fortnight,” Abdullah said.
He also urged the family not to fall prey to the designs of those who could exploit the incident for political gains.
Police said the army had laid an ambush after getting intelligence about the alleged presence of militants in the area.
"Unfortunately, the villager walked into the ambush, and noticing suspicious movement, the troops opened fire, resulting in his death,” a police officer said.
Relatives of Magray rejected the army’s statement that the young man had refused to stop and charged that he had been killed "in cold blood.”
"Torture marks were visible on the body of Magray. There was only one bullet wound in the lower part of the leg,” said Shabir Ahmad, a relative.
The man worked for the Border Roads Organisation and his father is an activist of the ruling National Conference.
Earlier yesterday, hundreds of villagers blocked the road near Chogal village squatting on the road with the body of the slain villager.
After assurances from the authorities, the relatives agreed to bury Magray’s body.
The killing occurred on a day of sporadic protests in the Kashmir Valley over the murder of two teenaged sisters, allegedly by Lashkar-e-Taiba militants in the northern town of Sopore.
The intensity of a two-decade-old insurgency against Indian rule has fallen since New Delhi and Islamabad began a peace process in 2004 to resolve all disputes including Kashmir.
But civilian protests against India’s rule have increased.
Militant groups are known to kill people suspected of being police informers, while security forces have been accused by human rights organisations of extrajudicial killings and acting with impunity.
February 05, 2011 | 12:00 AM