J&K Govt admits judgmental error in Bishnah, appeals for peace

Angry protests continue all over

By Sanjeev Pargal


Protests spilled all over Jammu from City to Akhnoor and Kathua to Udhampur over the death of Kuldeep Verma at dharna venue of Sangarsh Samiti on Wednesday afternoon and subsequent events leading to his cremation in Bishnah while the Government, in a conciliatory move, today confessed that a "judgmental error" did take place when it tried to cremate Verma’s body before sunrise yesterday.
Bishnah town, the scene of massive violence yesterday in which a police vehicle was torched, seven cops were beaten-up forcing police to resort to heavy lathicharge and teargas on the mob, remained by and large calm today. Family members picked-up mortal remains of Verma this morning for immersion in river Ganges while police arrested five BJP activists for yesterday’s violence.
Meanwhile, the administration, for the first time today, openly appealed to the bandh sponsors, although without naming Shri Amarnath Sangarsh Samiti or the BJP, which had been spearheading 25 days long agitation demanding restoration of 800 kanals of land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), to call off their bandh as it was causing a lot of inconvenience not only to the common man but also to the hundreds of tourists and pilgrims visiting Baba Amarnath and Mata Vaishno Devi ji shrines.
A large number of youths, mostly the activists of Sangarsh Samiti, BJYM, Shiv Sena and affiliated organisations, marched to Parade Ground from Raj Tilak Road, Moti Bazaar, Link Road and surrounding areas this morning and made repeated attempts to attack PCR building adjacent to Government Women College Parade Ground shouting anti-police slogans for trying to cremate Verma’s body before sun rise allegedly using kerosene oil and liquor.
Also raising slogans against National Conference president Omar Abdullah, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and police authorities, the mob subjected police vehicles parked outside the PCR to heavy stone pelting. A strong pose of police and CRPF jawans prevented the protesters from directly targeting the PCR but the youths took control of a police vehicle and set it on fire. The vehicle was partially burnt before flames were extinguished.
Police and para-military personnel used lathicharge and teargas to disperse the mob, causing injuries to a number of them.
Later, authorities deployed more CRPF at Parade Ground especially the area surrounding the PCR to defuse the tension.
In Bishnah town, the youths held a demonstration against the arrest of five youths in connection with burning down of a police vehicle, in which body of Verma was transported from Parade Ground to Bishnah, and beating-up of about half a dozen police personnel. Barring protest, Bishnah town observed a complete and peaceful bandh in response to the Samiti’s call as well as death of Kuldeep Verma and dis-respect shown to his body by the cops.
Earlier in the morning, family members and relatives of Verma besides MLA Bishnah Ashwani Sharma and activists of the Samiti gathered at cremation ground and collected mortal remains of Verma.
At Muthi and Barnai, a large number of people gathered on Jammu-Akhnoor road and held protests against Governor N N Vohra besides NC and PDP leaders. They blocked the road for about two hours before dispersing. In several parts of the City especially the Old City, ding-dong battles between police and protesters continued till late this evening. The youths pelting stones on police were chased away by the cops with lathicharge and teargassing. People took out "a funeral procession in the form of a dummy" of Omar Abdullah from Bohri to Talab Tillo and set it on fire before thrashing the dummy with boots and sticks.
More than two dozen protesters and cops were injured in the clashes, sources said.
Even as there was no curfew in any part of the City today, police brutalities were reported to have crossed all limits with cops even thrashing children searching for essential commodities like milk and vegetables.
The passers-by were also not spared, locals said.
Addressing a joint press conference this afternoon, IGP Jammu K Rajendra, Divisional Commissioner Sudanshu Pandey and Secretary Information K B Jandial said situation by and large in Jammu region remained peaceful today barring the incident outside the PCR.
Forty odd activists and leaders of Sangarsh Samiti, BJP and their affiliated organisations have either been taken into preventive custody or arrested in connection with violence.
Mr Pandey admitted that it was a "judgmental error" on the part of administration to cremate the dead body of Kuldeep Verma in the night but maintained that authorities had no such intentions and these were the "circumstances created by the protesters", who reached Bishnah within no time coupled with announcements made from two religious places to gather at the cremation ground, which compelled the "handful of cops and an officer" present on the spot to go for immediate cremation.
Categorically denying the allegations of dis-respect shown to the body or family members of the victim, the Divisional Commissioner said the body was taken on a stretcher to police vehicle along with family members of Verma to Bishnah where pyre had already been laid and a Pandit was called to perform last rituals.
Asserting that the administration had planned to cremate the body after sunrise, he claimed that a large number of people started gathering at the cremation ground at 4 am itself following announcements made from a Temple and a Gurudwara and protesters rushed to Bishnah from Jammu. Sensing that situation might go out of control once again as had happened at Parade Ground and Medical College earlier, few cops and a police officer tasked to perform cremation, lit the pyre in the presence of family members of the victim at around 4.30 am. As mob gathered, the cops retrieved after which the youths took away body of Verma from the pyre.
Outrightly rejecting the reports that cops had used tyres, kerosene oil and liquor to hurriedly cremate the dead body, Mr Pandey declared that authorities would take stringent possible action against the cops if an iota of evidence was given by anyone in support of the allegations. Also, he announced, the authorities would go for drastic action if the charges of assault on victim’s wife were established. The authorities will speak to her, he said.
Giving reasons for mid-night lifting of the body from Parade Ground, the Divisional Commissioner said the administration had very specific inputs that the protesters were plotting large scale trouble in the City in the morning.
"There would have been more casualties and damage had the authorities not acted in the night and shifted the body to Bishnah for cremation", he said, adding "in a normal course, the protesters should have allowed family members of the victim to take body to their house at Talab Tillo and cremate it peacefully with all rituals". This was not done. The protesters twice lifted the body from Medical College and kept it on the road "to whip up public sentiments", he regretted.
Meanwhile, for the first time, the administration today virtually appealed to bandh organisors, albeit without naming the bandh sponsors, not to disrupt day to day activities when the tourist season was at its peak and allow the people to get back to normal life.
"Thousands of yatris are coming to Amarnath and Mata Vaishno Devi shrines, who are being subjected to a lot of inconvenience. We appealed to the people (a direct reference to the bandh organisors) to take these things into consideration and avoid undue hardships to the tourists, pilgrims and common man", Mr Rajendra said.
He added that situation was by and large peaceful in entire Jammu region and well under control barring some incidents of stone pelting. There was no curfew in any part of Jammu after 6 pm yesterday, he said.
Replying to a question that bodies of militants are allowed to be kept for two to three days and not lifted by police, Mr Rajendra, who had served as IGP as well as DIG Kashmir range, said the authorities had never allowed body of any militant to be kept for protest for two to three days. "If there is any scope for exploitation of the situation, destruction of property and unpleasant situation emerging, we always act timely", he said, adding " we had already lost one life of a youth and we didn’t want more damage so we had to act in the night".
Regarding beating-up of two journalists during police operation to lift the body in the mid-night, the IGP apologised for the incident. "I regret it", he said.
Meanwhile, entire Jammu district including City, urban, semi-urban and even rural areas responded to 72 hours bandh call, given yesterday by the Sangarsh Samiti, after Verma sacrificed his life at the venue of dharna by the Samiti activists at Parade Ground demanding revocation of the Government decision concealing allotment of 800 kanals of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).
Majority of Government offices, educational institutions, shops and other business establishments remained closed in the City.
People fought pitched battles with police at several places, mostly in the Old City, throughout the day. Having a tough day in humid conditions, cops retaliated with lathicharge and teargas. Both sides kept on running notwithstanding the heat during the day.
A group of students and scholars of University of Jammu (JU) were cane charged and subsequently taken into custody by police at Dogra Chowk when they were taking out protest rally under the banner of Jammu State Students Morcha (JSSM).
Those arrested included Rajneesh Sharma, JURSEA general secretary, Sunil Sharma, Rakesh Chib, Mukesh and Shri Kant.
Later in evening, students and scholars led by JURSEA president, Vikas Sharma also held a demonstration in front of University gate demanded immediate release of all the arrested students and scholars and dismissal of erring police officials.
Reports of people taking to streets and burning effigies of Omar Abdullah, whose statement in Lok Sabha had prompted Kuldeep Verma to end his life, were reported from different parts of Jammu and Samba districts. However, there was no report of any untoward incident.
Traffic on Jammu-Srinagar national highway was blocked at four places including MH Chowk, Jakhaini, Venus Chowk and Slathia Chowk in Udhampur town by the activists of the Samiti and the BJP led by Pawan Gupta.
Even as Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur, Ajay Khajuria this morning imposed prohibitory orders in the town under Section 144, people gathered at Main Chowk in Udhampur and burnt the effigy of Omar Abdullah. Chain hunger strike by the Sangarsh Samiti also entered into sixth day at Main Chowk, Udhampur.
At National Highway, people subjected some vehicles to stone pelting.
Commercial traffic on Jammu-Srinagar, Jammu-Pathankot and Jammu-Akhnoor roads remained suspended while private vehicles plied normally except for the time being Jammu-Srinagar highway was blocked by the mob.