Four shot in Kupwara, village blames Army

The tragedy is snowballing into a controversy as the villagers refuse to bury the bodies. The Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has ordered a probe. Villagers say Rashtriya Rifles troops opened 8220;unprovoked fire8221; on a group of villagers watching a cricket match at a local playground.

8220;It was around 1.30 pm that a group of armymen started firing towards a local, Abdul Samad, who was watching a cricket match along with dozens of other villagers especially children. The firing continued for 15 minutes,8221; said Mohamad Shafi, an eyewitness. 8220;Samad died on the spot. Ghulam Hassan, who was playing cricket, tried to shield two children. But all three were hit and died on way to hospital.8221;

The villagers also said the troops stopped them from taking the injured to the hospital. 8220;Soon after the firing, the Army blocked all roads and didn8217;t allow anyone to move out of the village,8221; said Abdul Rashid Bhat, an agriculture officer. 8220;We want justice,8221; he added.

8220;I want those army personnel who killed my son to be punished. I will not bury the body of my son till justice is done,8221; said Ghulam Hassan8217;s father Ghulam Rasool. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who was in the district three hours before the incident took place, has ordered a magisterial inquiry.

8220;The circumstances in which these boys lost their lives needs to be investigated thoroughly,8221; Azad said. He has directed Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Basharat Ahmad Dhar and Inspector General of Police, Kashmir Range to visit to the spot.

Army spokesman Lt Col V K Batra, however, denied the allegations of villagers and said the four were killed when militants opened fire using grenade launchers.

8220;In the afternoon, on a specific a tip-off that two militants were hiding in village Chak Dudipura, the army cordoned off the area. However, while the troops were cordoning off the village, the militants opened fire on the Army in which the four persons were killed,8221; he said.

8220;Militants specifically targeted two persons who were overground workers who were arrested and released recently, presuming the duo would provide information to the army about the location of the hiding militants they were killed. And in the exchange of firing two children also got injured and succumbed to their injuries,8221; spokesman said.