Case against army for allegedly killing civilian

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February 09, 2007 20:32 IST

A case was registered against the army for allegedly murdering a person, while five persons, including three army personnel, were killed in separate militancy-related incidents in Jammu and Kashmir, a police spokesman said.

Four jawans and a civilian were injured in an exchange of fire between militants and a security patrol at Arigam-Tral in Pulwama district on Thursday evening, the spokesman said.

All the injured, Naib Subedar Sant Raj Singh and sepoys Sanjay Sinha and Parveen Kumar Singh and a civilian, Mohammed Afzal Kumar, later succumbed to injuries.

However, people took to the streets claiming the civilian was killed by the army.

The local residents assembled at the main chowk of Arigam and alleged that Kumar, an employee of Centuar Hotel, was dragged out of a mosque by the army and shot dead.

Following the allegations, Jammu and Kashmir Police registered a case against the army under section 302 of Ranbir penal code in police station Tral, a police spokesman said.

A defence spokesman clarified that the civilian died when militants, escaping after attacking an army column, opened fire.

He said the troops did not open fire as the scene of the incident was in a densely-populated area.

The spokesman said a column of army troops was going for an operation on Thursday night when they were attacked by militants at Arigam in Tral area. Three army personnel were killed in the attack.

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