Kupwara: The locals of Daril village in Handwara on Wednesday rejected that the claims made by the army about the killing of a militant in an encounter yesterday and termed it as baseless and fabricated.
They said the slain is a civilian, and identified him as Shahid Bashir Mir son of Bashir Ahmad Mir resident of Daril village of Tarathpora upper Ramhal. He was student of 2nd year of Handwara Degree College.
The locals said that Shahid had left home on Monday morning along with a herd of sheep. He later went missing for past few days. “Yesterday army claimed to have killed a militant in an encounter at Hangnikoot Handwara.
The killed person was actually missing Shahid and has been killed in a fake encounter,” the locals alleged. They also said that he had bullet injury on head and chest.
Meanwhile massive protests have erupted in the native village of the slain. Reports said that the protestors have refused to bury the body of slain Shahid and are demanding action against the army. However police is investigating the matter.
Meanwhile Engineer Raheed has condemned the killing and has termed it as “cold blooded murder”.
Two vehicles of forces were torched by angry protesters in Tarathpora area of Handwara Thursday as the protests intensified against the killing of Shahid Ahmad Mir at the hands of forces.
Shahid was killed during a gunfight which locals and the family of the slain termed as “fake encounter” in Handwara forests on Tuesday.
Local sources said that protesters poured onto streets in Tarathpora area of Handwara protesting against what they termed “cold blooded murder” of the local youth, Shahid.
They said the protesting civilians clashed with forces and torched force’s vehicles accompanying the Deputy Commissioner Kupwara, Khalid Jehangir.
Khalid Jehangir had reached the spot in a bid to pacify the protesters.
Sources said that several protesters sustained injuries in the clashes. The locals have put the body of the slain on main road and are not ready to bury him, they said.
