New Delhi: The death of three civilians allegedly in the custody of the Army in Poonch has created ripples in Kashmir, where several political parties staged protests and demanded an impartial probe Saturday.
The Army has put out a statement on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) saying that it has received reports regarding three civilian deaths in the area.
“The matter is under investigation. Indian Army stands committed to extending, full support and cooperation in the conduct of investigations,” the Army said.
It did not deny or accept the allegations against it and neither did it announce its own probe into the allegations.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration too issued a statement Saturday saying that “medico-legal formalities were conducted and legal action in this matter has been initiated by the appropriate authority”.
The statement added: “Government has announced compensation for each of the deceased [civilians]. Further, the government has announced compassionate appointments to the next of kin of each deceased.”
The statement did not, however, specify what legal action has been initiated.
As reported by ThePrint earlier, the three dead civilians are reported to be part of at least eight men rounded up by the Army Friday afternoon, in the wake of the killings of four soldiers in an ambush by terrorists Thursday.
Multiple videos have appeared on the social media site, purportedly of captive civilians being beaten and tortured by men seen wearing Army uniforms.
Meanwhile, mobile internet services were also suspended in Poonch and Rajouri districts early Saturday.
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Political parties protest
In Srinagar, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti, claimed Saturday that 15 people were picked up by the Army for questioning, of whom three died, while the remaining were seriously injured.
“After the Poonch incident, 15 people were picked up by the Army for questioning from Topa Peer village, out of which bodies of three bearing injury marks were found near the encounter site. The remaining 12 persons are admitted to different hospitals and are in critical condition,” Mehbooba said at a press conference at the party headquarters in Srinagar.
She added: “I also watched a video that shows Army men thrashing people and spraying red chilli powder on their wounds. It is a heart-wrenching video, however, I do not know about its authenticity.”
A protest against the civilian deaths was also held by the Apni Party led by its Kashmir provincial president Ashraf Mir protested at the party headquarters in the Church Lane area of Srinagar.
The National Conference (NC) also held a protest and shouted slogans demanding authorities to “stop the bloodshed of innocents”.
Both Apni Party and NC were reportedly stopped from holding a march by the police.
On Thursday, unidentified terrorists targeted a Maruti Gypsy and a truck of the Army, killing four soldiers and injuring two. After the attack, the terrorists reportedly mutilated the bodies of at least two soldiers and took the weapons of some of them.
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)
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