Did Mehbooba Mufti send army jawans to Tihar jail? Here's the truth
New Delhi, Feb 21: As the experts trying to find the loopholes in the security that led to the killing of 40 CRPF personnel at Pulwama in a terror attack on February 14, an accusation has been floated against former Jammu and Kashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti, that it was her earlier order that prevented the explosive laden SUV from checking.
In a video clip that is being widely shared on social media Major General (retd.) GD Bakshi that Mehbooba Mufti had made army apologise and even sent jawans to Tihar jail after a firing incident on a check post near Srinagar.
In the video he Bakshi was also seen elaborating on how the system of checkposts and barriers on roads in Kashmir was dismantled after Mehbooba's order.
India Today Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found several discrepancies in Bakshi’s claim. No army men involved in this incident ever went to Tihar jail.
Gen. Bakshi made the claim during a TV show. Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi also shared the video through her verified Twitter account. Some people shared this clipping on Facebook as well.
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy also claimed that the "army jawans were prosecuted and are still in jail".
Here’s the English translation of what Bakshi said during the TV show: During the Mehbooba Mufti's rule, there were three army checkposts outside Srinagar. One day, an annoyed Kashmiri man questioned why he was being stopped at the barricades. In a rage, the man crashed the first barrier, then the second one and despite repeated warnings, he did not stop. When he crashed the third barrier, army personnel opened fire and the man died on the spot. This led to huge outrage and protests from locals. Mehbooba Mufti ensured that the soldier who had opened fire was jailed, and he is still in Tihar jail. After this incident, the barriers were removed.
Listen to this please. pic.twitter.com/iC8Djq1a7B
— Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) February 17, 2019
However, there are some factual errors in Gen. Bakshi's story;
The above mentioned incident took place on November 3, 2014 at Chattergam in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. According to a report in
The Indian Expressfive boys were traveling from Chattergam towards Nowgam on a main road around 5.15pm when their car was fired upon by 53 Rashtriya Rifles men. Two of them died in the firing. There are different versions of eyewitnesses, police and army on what preceded the firing at the barricade.However, this incident did not take place during Mehbooba's rule as claimed by Gen. Bakshi, but Omar Abdullah was the chief minister in November 2014. The PDP came to power in April, 2015 and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed became the chief minister. Mehbooba became the chief minister in April 2016 after her father’s death.
Following the incident, Army had to face the fury of the people of the valley with several protests and violence taking place in the entire region. An FIR was filed against army personnel at Chadoora police station.
The army agreed that soldiers of 53 Rashtriya Rifles involved in the incident were at fault. A court of inquiry was initiated against nine soldiers, according to media reports.
However, there is no media report suggesting that these soldiers were convicted and sent to Tihar jail.
A detailed report regarding this in
The Quintquotes the top officer in charge at the time, Lt. Gen. (retd.) DS Hooda, saying the claims of security personnel being court-martialed was fake news.
Who authorised the prosecution of our army jawans who in 2014 shot at a Maruti car which smashed through three check points without stopping? That person is responsible for this latest SUV to get near the convoy killing 37 CRPF jawans. The army jawans are still in jail
— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) February 16, 2019
The army sources also confirmed to
India Todaythat the accused were never sent to jail.When India Today reached out to Gen. Bakshi about the claims that he made during the TV show. He agreed that he was wrong about his claim regarding the army men languishing in jail. However, he insisted that the PDP government was responsible for relaxing the security checking procedures in the Valley which were earlier being followed.
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Mob assault victim whose ears were cut with pliers, hands were broken dies in Bihar
Nalanda: A 50-year-old cloth vendor who was brutally assaulted by a mob and had his ears cut off and was branded with an iron rod in Nalanda district last week, died during treatment on Friday night, police said.
According to a report published by The Indian Express, the victim, Mohammad Athar Hussain, a resident of Gagan Diwan village, was undergoing treatment at Pawapuri VIMS hospital after being attacked on December 5 while selling clothes on his bicycle.
He allegedly suffered severe injuries, including fractures and burn wounds. Police said six people have been arrested and two minors detained in connection with the case.
Mohammad Shakib Alam reportedly said, Hussain, who also lived partly with his in-laws in Barui village, was returning home when his bicycle broke down near Bhattapar village under Roh police station, forcing him to look for a puncture shop.
“When he asked a group of people about a puncture repair shop nearby, they asked his name and profession and then assaulted him, cut his ears, beat him with a heated rod,” TIE quoted Shakib as saying.
According to the report, Hussain is quoted as saying, “They tied my hands and feet, locked me in a room, and began to beat me up. They beat me with bricks and rods, breaking my fingers and hand. They even cut my ears and finger ends with pliers,” he claimed, adding that the mob had “stripped him to check his private parts, branding his body with a heated iron rod that peeled his skin off”.
“Someone struck me with a rod, another climbed on my chest and throttled me, causing blood to gush from my mouth. My entire body was raw and peeling from the assault.”
In her complaint filed on December 6, Hussain’s wife Shabnam Parveen named 10 residents of Bhattapar village and said several others were involved. She alleged that her husband was falsely accused of theft, brutally beaten, and tortured. She also claimed that villagers threatened her family when they tried to intervene.
The FIR invokes Sections 190, 191(2) and 191(3) (unlawful assembly and rioting), 126(2), 115(2), 117 and 118 (grievous hurt and use of dangerous means), 109 and 74 (abetment and common intention), and 303(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, with murder charges added after Hussain succumbed to his injuries.
Police also confirmed that a counter-complaint was filed by one of the accused, alleging that Hussain had attempted a burglary. However, officials said both versions are being investigated.
“Gold bangles, mangalsutra, silver girdle, and brass utensils… were stolen from our house,” the complaint claims. “My brother Satyanarayan spotted the thief, and villagers caught him with some recovered items. Hussain struck Satyanarayan with a rod during capture, injuring him,” police said.
According to a police source, an emergency 112 call led Roh police to the village at around 2.30 am to rescue the severely injured Hussain. He and the suspects were then taken to the police station.
Hussain was first taken to PHC Roh, then referred to Nawada Sadar Hospital and finally Pawapuri VIMS, where he died. A post-mortem has been conducted.
Nawada Superintendent of Police Abhinav Dhiman allegedly said a special team has arrested eight people so far and efforts are on to trace the remaining accused.
