Kashmir: Video shows man tied to army jeep as human shield against stone-pelting protesters

A video of a youth tied to the front of a moving army jeep as a human shield against stone pelters has evoked anger and shock in Kashmir. The Indian Army has said it is investigating the video. “In reference to the video showing a young man tied to an army jeep, the contents of the video are being verified and investigated,” a defence spokesman said here. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted his shock, posting, “This young man was TIED to the front of an army jeep to make sure no stones were thrown at the jeep? This is just so shocking!” He further called for an inquiry. “A warning can be heard (in the video) saying stone pelters will meet this fate. This requires an urgent inquiry and follow up NOW.”

Here's the video as well. A warning can be heard saying stone pelters will meet this fate. This requires an urgent inquiry & follow up NOW!! pic.twitter.com/qj1rnCVazn

— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) April 14, 2017

The video was reportedly shot in the Beerwah area of Budgam district, where miscreants disrupted polling during Sunday’s bypoll to Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency by pelting stones. It is being widely shared on social networks in Kashmir and is drawing condemnation. In the clip, an army soldier could be heard saying, “Those who throw stones will meet the same fate.” The video shows the army jeep moving ahead of an army patrol, while some villagers could be overheard that the youth had been picked by the army. [caption id=“attachment_3384300” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  A screenshot of the video that has gone viral[/caption] With internet services restored in Kashmir Valley on Thursday night after Sunday’s deadly violence that led to the death of eight civilians in firing by security forces, many such videos emerged on social media sites on Friday. According to The Indian Express, Tanvir Sadiq of the National Conference said the incident has taken place at Gundipora village in Beerwah and termed the incident shocking and shameful. This comes days after a video clip showing youths assaulting CRPF jawans during bypoll to the Srinagar parliamentary constituency on 9 April went viral. National Conference leader Omar Abdullah represents the Beerwah constituency in the state assembly, said that while he understands the outrage generated across the country by the video in which CRPF personnel were being heckled by protestors, he was outraged that the video of the youth tied to the jeep was not generating the same anger. “I understand the outrage the CRPF video generated. I’m also outraged that the video of the youth on the jeep won’t generate the same anger. Let’s see channels going ballistic and having discussions with outraged panelists now. Probably not since ‘Kashmir is ours’ hell with Kashmiris,” the former chief minister said. Omar demanded an inquiry into the incident. “A warning can be heard saying stone pelters will meet this fate. This requires an urgent inquiry and follow up NOW!” he added. With inputs from agencies