Police hunt for 7-year-old Bemina ‘protester’

Nishwan Rasool
Srinagar, August 24: When the police were unable to look for a seven-year-old 'protester' from Nund Reshi colony in Bemina, Srinagar, they allegedly roughed up other members of his family and also offered locals Rs one lakh as a reward for information on the child.

Bashir Ahmad Lone (50) and his father, Habibulla (75) were beaten up by the police when they could not find Danish alias Bret Lee, the youngest member of the family.

“They were looking for my seven-year old brother Danish alias Bret Lee. But when they couldn’t find him, the police got frustrated and ruthlessly beat up my father and grandfather who they also taken into custody,” said Danish’s brother Aamir.

Aamir added that the police officials even did not even spare the other members of the locality, “They harassed our mothers and sisters they even told others that if you provide us with information on Danish you would be given Rs one lakh in cash.”

Even Aamir was not spared, he alleged, “I was abused and beaten up by the police.”

Danish would never take part in protests. I can’t understand why they all are after my grandson, asked a shaken Habibullah.

On Saturday, the police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) carried out a crackdown on Bemina’s Nund Reshi Colony.

Locals alleged that the forces entered their homes without making any announcements in the area and rummaged through their things. “They told the youth and elders of colony to go to the mosque for an identification parade after sealing off the area,” said Atif Khan (name changed), a local.

Speaking to Kashmir Dispatch, Atif added, that a youth, working as an informer for the police pinpointed some 40 youth from the area, who were picked up by the police.

Later, 33 of them were released after locals protested for their release. The police booked seven of them and charged them under Section 105 of the RPC, said SHO Zahoor Ahmed.

Meanwhile, the streets were lined up with troopers who refused to allow people to offer prayers. Locals said that the police broke windowpanes of houses, mosques and the darazgah.

“The police are not firing tear gas shells to disperse the crowd but they are targeting the houses of our locality during the time of iftaar. We don’t drink milk and water or dates and bread but we take their bullets and inhale the tear gas smoke. The troopers have broken down our electric transformers and our water tanks,” lamented Samar Jan (name changed), another local.

Samar, further said that the police who blamed senior citizens of the area as the kingpins of the stone pelting beat their area president.

All the posters of the martyrs have been taken off the walls and have been putt in cow dung, Samar said. He added, “Police even said that if you will not surrender Danish and stop agitating in the area, girls would be targeted and their heads would be shaved off.”

Meawhile, SHO Zahoor rubbished the allegations, “We have been always telling the locals not to create law and order problems. The stone throwers extort money from the passersby. We have been encountering these types of complaints. So, strong action has to be taken to maintain law and order in the society.”