Jammu Police Face Probe After Video Shows Kashmiri Man Stripped and Paraded
Srinagar: Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir have ordered a probe after a Kashmiri man accused of theft was allegedly assaulted, partially stripped and paraded on an official vehicle by Jammu police in a busy market of the winter capital on June 24.
This is the second incident of mob justice in Jammu this year in which police have faced accusations of misconduct and it bears resemblance to the 2017 incident involving an army major in which a Kashmiri man was tied to an army vehicle and paraded in Budgam district.
In the latest incident, a video which was shared multiple times on social media showed two uniformed policemen pulling out the man, whose hands are tied behind his back, from the rear side of a J&K police vehicle in the presence of Azad Manhas, the station house officer (SHO) of Bakshi Nagar police station.
As the two policemen are seen dragging the suspect and hauling him on the bonnet of the car, some reporters at the spot thrust their mics at the visibly distraught man, who is heard identifying himself as a resident of Srinagar.
The video shows Manhas poking the face of the suspect with his wooden staff and pushing him with a degree of violence to make him sit straight on the bonnet and reveal his face. A public address system mounted on the police vehicle announces that the suspect was a “professional thief”.
According to police, the suspect had allegedly robbed a man outside a hospital in Bakshi Nagar police station jurisdiction on June 6. The victim spotted the suspect on Tuesday in a market area and demanded his money. However, the suspect allegedly tried to flee after injuring him with a knife.
Soon, policemen patrolling the area joined the chase and the suspect was pinned down. Later, the suspect was allegedly assaulted by some bystanders with some policemen also allegedly joining the mob. Following this attack, his shirt was removed and a garland of shoes was thrown around his neck.
Speaking with reporters at the scene of the incident, SHO Manhas claimed that the suspect was member of a recently busted gang of thieves. The police officer also showered praises on the locals for helping the police in nabbing him. “He was under the influence of drugs,” the SHO alleged.
However, the SHO didn’t clarify the grounds on which he was making the allegation. It was not possible for the policemen to have carried out a medical examination of the suspect while the incident was unfolding.
‘Serious note’
After the video went viral on social media on Tuesday, senior superintendent of police (Jammu), Joginder Singh set up a probe committee into the incident. In an order, Singh said that the police have taken “serious note” of the conduct of police officers and an inquiry has been ordered which will be completed in a week’s time.
“Jammu Police firmly believes in upholding rule of law and at the same time any non-professional tendency/approach on part any officer/official will not encouraged and desired departmental/legal action will be taken against such delinquent members,” the order said.
The incident has triggered outrage across Jammu and Kashmir with the Awami Ittehad Party legislator Sheikh Khursheed and others demanding strict action against the “disgraceful conduct” of the police personnel.
“Law enforcement must never become a tool for spectacle or humiliation. No matter the crime, our justice system is governed by the rule of law, not mob mentality or public shaming. Such actions reflect poorly on the very institutions meant to uphold justice and protect individual rights,” he said.
“Under which law was he paraded naked and made to wear shoes around his neck? The police have no authority to decide whether someone is a criminal or not that is the job of the courts. This is sheer hooliganism,” Mansha Altaf, a Kashmiri posted on X.
In Jammu, a protest was organised by Rashtriya Bajrang Dal, a Hindu rightwing groups, in support of the Bakshi Nagar SHO while urging the SSP Jammu to rollback the inquiry.
The Bakshi Nagar incident bears painful resemblance to the tying of Farooq Ahmad Dar, a Kashmiri civilian, to the bonnet of an army car in central Kashmir’s Budgam district in 2017 by army major Leetul Gogoi of 53 Rashtriya Rifles who claimed to have used the victim as a human shield against stone throwers.
While the incident had sparked outrage across the world, Gogoi was awarded with the Chief of Army Staff’s commendation card for his “efforts in counter-insurgency operations.”
In April this year, a suspected thief was caught while trying to snatch the earrings of a woman in the bustling Parade market of Jammu city following which half of his hair was shaved and ‘thief’ was scrawled with black ink in Hindi on his forehead.
The suspect, a resident of Reasi district in Jammu, was later paraded semi-naked allegedly in the presence of police personnel to the Pacca Danga police station following which a case was registered against him.
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