An Army Major allegedly forced a local resident Waheed Ahmad Malik, 28, to pose for the camera with an Ak-47 slung across his shoulder in Lawaypora village on the outskirts of Srinagar and apparently threatened to kill him in a fake encounter. The Major had, on Sunday, come searching for a group of youth suspected of scribbling anti-India graffiti in Lawaypora on the eve of the Independence Day. The police had earlier arrested three young men from the village for scribbling the graffiti. One of them, Anayutullah Malik, was Waheed’s cousin. The Major held Waheed responsible for scribbling anti-India graffiti in the village. [related-post] When he expressed his ignorance, the officer allegedly took him to the fields and filmed him. “I was at my home Sunday afternoon when army men came to my house, saying their Sahab wanted to see me,” Waheed, who works at an automobile showroom, told The Indian Express on Tuesday. “The officer said that I am responsible for scribbling anti-India graffiti on 15 August.” Waheed told the officer that he didn’t know who he (officer) was looking for. “He then took me to the nearby paddy fields and handed me an AK47. Then, he forced me in front of the camera,” Waheed said. “The officer told me he will give the picture to the police and get me killed in a fake encounter.” After the Army contingent left, a group of village elders approached the local MLA, Noor Mohammad Sheikh, and also submitted a written complaint to the police. “After the matter was brought to our notice, we approached the MLA who spoke to the concerned authorities,” said Ghulam Mohammed Parray, a village elder. “It is not acceptable that army men harass an innocent person.” Waheed’s family members are now worried for his safety. “We are all worried,” said Waheed’s elder brother Firdous Ahmad. “Everyone in the village knows he is not involved in anything. His record is clean.” In their complaint to the police, the villagers alleged that the Major has been terrorizing them for some time now. “The army officer clicked pictures of the innocent Waheed Ahmad after handing him an Ak-47. We fear the major may kill him in a fake encounter,” their complaint read. “The Major, along with his men, also often visits a local paramedical college where many girls are studying, without reason,” the complaint added. The police said they have received the complaint and initiated an investigation. “We are looking into the complaint. I am not sure whether a case has been registered in this regard so far,” said IGP Kashmir Javid Mujtaba Geelani. When contacted the defense spokesperson in Srinagar Col N N Joshi, termed the story, a “baseless allegation.” “There is no substance in the matter and it is not factual,” he said.
