Three civilians die in Army firing in J&K
SRINAGAR: Three civilians, including a girl, were killed and two others injured on Saturday when Army personnel opened fire during clashes with stonepelting protesters in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, the police said.
This afternoon, a group of miscreants pelted stones at an Army patrol which was passing through Hawoora Mishipora area of Kulgam in south Kashmir, a police spokesperson said.
Five people sustained injuries when the Army personnel tried to disperse the protesters, he added.
The injured were rushed to a nearby hospital where three people, including a girl, succumbed to their injuries, the spokesperson said.
He said condition of the other two is stated to be stable.
The police have initiated an investigation into the matter, the spokesperson said.
A defence spokesperson here said some soldiers also sustained grievous injuries in the incident as they came under heavy stone-pelting and firing from militants.
Area Domination Patrol (ADP) of the Army, while moving in general area Hawoora, Kulgam, came under heavy stone-pelting. As the ADP tried to extricate, it was chased by an aggressive and menacing crowd of 400-500 persons which kept building up and coming dangerously close,” the spokesperson said.
The troops, while exercising extreme restraint, cautioned the stone-pelters, who refused to relent and hurled petrol bombs at the patrolling party, he said.
“At one point, some unidentified terrorists also fired at the column. This resulted in some soldiers sustaining grievous injuries. In response to this grave provocation and to ensure safety of troops, the Army resorted to controlled firing which resulted in the unfortunate loss of human lives, the spokesperson added.