- 115th Consecutive day of Shutdown, Protests, Clashes
- Retired Dy SP alleges thrashing by Army
- Six of the seriously injured were referred to SMHS hospital here
- Class 5 student among 3 girls fired with pellets in face
After 10 days of relatively peaceful situation, pellet horror returned to Kashmir Monday as two young girls, a woman and two youth were hit by pellets in their eyes by security forces at Rohmoo village of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district after protests in the area.
Reports said that over 50 people sustained pellet injuries after forces resorted to allegedly indiscriminate use of pellets and tear gas shells to disperse the protestors including women and young girls, who were protesting against the force’s action to remove the posters of local militants. According to residents of Rohmoo, forces including Army cordoned off Malwani Mohalla in Rohmoo, eight kms from district headquarters Pulwama. “Forces tore down banners of local militants, which provoked us forcing us to stage protests,” a group of locals said. They said forces fired dozens of tear gas shells and pellets indiscriminately on the protestors leaving at least 20 protesters including five females seriously injured. Among the injured were three teenage girls.
Six of the seriously injured were referred to SMHS hospital here.
According to hospital sources, the injured include Ifrah Jan, 13, hit by pellet in her both eyes, while Shabrooza 18, and Afroza 20, were hit by pellets in their left eyes. “Two youth, one of them identified as Muhammad Ashraf, 28, son of Abdul Gani Wani, were hit by pellets in both eyes, and another youth Muhammad Ashraf son of Abdur Rashid, 24, was hit by pellets in his right eye and chest,” they said. Manzoor Ahmed son of Ghulam Muhammad Dar was hit by pellets in the right eye. Muhammad Ashraf was hit by bullet in his chest two months ago and had survived.
Reports said that after the pellet firing on civilians, clashes spilled over to other areas with hundreds of people coming out of their homes. Angry protestors hurled rocks and stones at the local Army camp damaging its fencing, reports said. However, a huge contingent of CRPF, SOG reached the spot and used teargas shelling and showered pellets on the protesting people injuring 10 more protestors taking the total number of injured to 30. As the news about the clashes spread in the area, hundreds of people from Zaigam, Tujan, Goosu, Wahibug, Khasipora rushed towards the village and resorted to massive stone pelting.
“The clashes erupted at 8 a.m and ended at around 5: 30 p.m,” a local said. He said that while six of the injured were referred to SMHS Srinagar, rest of the injured were treated at District Hospital Pulwama. Locals alleged vandalism by the forces. “Forces damaged household goods including TVs, washing machines, refrigerators and other valuable goods,” locals alleged.
The situation in the area was tense till late evening.
Talking to Kashmir Post, SSP Pulwama Rayees Bhat said that Army was in the village for search operation when the youth pelted stones on them and later the people also attacked an Army camp. “After this whole episode, the police and paramilitary forces reached the village to pacify the situation,” he said.
A police spokesman, however, said that forces cordoned off Rohmoo village in Pulwama in the morning. “Some miscreants assembled and pelted stones on the forces. Later on a huge mob assembled and pelted stones on the forces camp. The reinforcement was sent to the spot. In this incident some persons, police / CRPF personnel including three officers were injured. Most of the injured were discharged after first aid,” the statement said.
Late evening reports said that panic gripped the family of Abdul Gani Dar of Rohmoo after they spotted an unexploded shell in the lawns. “All the family members decided to not stay home fearing the shell may explode and cause damage,” residents told Kashmir Post.
Today’s action by the forces broke the 10-day long relative peace. On October 21, a youth from Central Kashmir’s Budgam district died of a cardiac arrest after being allegedly chased by the forces. Since then, there was no untoward incident in Kashmir.
Retired police officer beaten: Reports said that security forces barged into the house of a retired police officer – DSP Ghulam Hassan Rather – in Rohmoo Pulwama and allegedly thrashed the inmates. “Even though I informed Army men that I am a retired Deputy Superintendent of Police and have also got Meritorious Presidential Medal, but they didn’t listen to me and went on rampage. They thrashed me and my children without any provocation. I am aghast. They treated a retired police officer like this, what they will do to common people,” local news agency CNS quoted Rather as saying. Rather’s son is also a serving police official.
Meanwhile, clashes erupted in Muloo Chitragam village in Shopian district after forces raided the house of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat district president Muhammad Yousuf Falahi to arrest him. Falahi is evading arrest for past more than three months and his house has been raided and ransacked at least six times.
Reports said that forces raided Ajas, Ganai Mohalla, Sheikh Mohall and Rawatpora villages of north Kashmir’s Bandipore district and conducted searches. Two youth were injured after being beaten by the forces while 35-year-old Bashir-u-Din Ganai was detained.
Police said some miscreants hurled a petrol bomb near Sub District Hospital Sopore.
Class 5 student among 3 girls fired with pellets in face
In the Trauma Theatre of SMHS Hospital, 13-year-old Ifrah Jan from Rohmoo in Pulwama is in excruciating pain and horror. Her both eyes have been hit by pellets by security forces today, her face and neck are dotted with pellet wounds causing swelling, quite reminiscent of the face of 14-year old Insha Manzoor of Shopian, who lost both her eyes to pellet injuries in July this year.
Waiting for her surgery, Ifrah cries, refuses to let go the hand of a relative of hers that she grasps tightly with her blood smeared and henna decorated hand. The color of henna, blood and Betadine wash on her hand creates a horrifying mosaic.
“What has happened to me? Why can’t I see?” Ifrah’s sobs continue. She startles at every sound. “Who is this?” she asks. “Just a doctor,” her relative replies.
She is one of the six pellet victims injured in eyes at Rohmoo Pulwama Monday afternoon and getting treated at SMHS Hospital.
As doctors wait for some blood test reports of Ifrah before they take her in for surgery, they discuss her case with each other at the entrance of the theatre. “Very bad injuries,” one of them shakes his head.
Inside Ifrah narrates to her relative the story of her injury, dotted with many questions. “We went to fields, they chased us into our home,” Ifrah said, unaware of the presence of this reporter. “We went home and they fired on us there,” she says, suddenly stopping and asking, “Why can’t I swallow? It hurts.”
“They held me by my hair and dragged me. They pulled my hair out,” Ifrah shudders and asks, “Will doctors operate on me?” She cries again, “Please ask them not to operate on me.”
The teenage girl, a student of Class 5, as per her relatives who waited outside the Trauma Theatre, was injured in the lawn of her house where security forces fired pellets on her while clashes were going on in the village.
“We had asked our girls to stay home. But look, even home is not safe for them,” Rafeeqa, the relative accompanying Ifrah at the theatre said.
“They injured so many of our daughters,” said Abdul Raheem, an elderly man identifying himself as a relative of Afroza, another pellet hit girl.
Afroza, 18, daughter of Mohammad Akram Mir, another pellet victim, has her left eye perforated by pellets. She said she was looking for her younger sister who she had not been able to trace for some time. “There were protests in our area and I was worried for my sister. I went looking for her and they (forces) fired indiscriminately injuring scores of us, including girls,” she said.
Later, while Afroza was being shifted to hospital, she learnt that her sister had also been injured by pellets in her hand. Afroza is a student of Class 8.
While the two girls waited for surgeries, hospital authorities said that 20 year old girl named Shabroza daughter of Mohammad Akbar Bagati was being operated upon for her pellet injury in left eye.
All girls have grave pellet injuries, doctors said. “We are in the process of evaluating the injuries. But the injuries appear to be bad,” they said.
The three girls add to the list of young females who have become victims of pellet injuries in the past few months, amidst protests and quite often within the confines of their homes.
In the past nearly four months, hundreds of women with pellet injuries have been treated across hospitals in Kashmir. At least 18 of them had pellet injuries in eyes resulting in vision impairment.
Srinagar
While majority of the areas remained shut for the 115th consecutive day, shops were seen open in a few areas in Srinagar like Sanatnagar and Athwajan. Old Srinagar areas remained shut for the entire day while there was private traffic movement on the Dalgate-Saida Kadal road. Vendors were seen doing business from Zero Bridge to Ghanta Ghar. There was no relaxation today as per the protest calendar issued by the joint resistance leadership.
Reports said that locals foiled a bid to set ablaze a school building at Guru Bazar area of old Srinagar. After seeing smoke emanating from the top floor of the building, local youth entered into the school known as Muhamadiya School, a property of Jammu and Kashmir Jemiat-e-Ahlihadith, and doused the fire. “The building was a school some 15 years ago and is presently abandoned,” police said.
