Army thrashed me, my family in Nowshehra's Laam area: IGNOU Prof

Srinagar: An assistant professor at Indira Gandhi National Open University posted in New Delhi, Liaqat Ali, on Friday alleged that he and his family members were thrashed by the army in Laam area of Nowshera in J&K's Rajouri.

The incident took place on Thursday night when Ali along with his family members, two of whom are employed with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and two others with the Army, were near the residence of his sister, where they had to drop wedding gifts ahead of the main function scheduled for April 24. Ali also shared a video from the spot, where he is seen bleeding, on social media platforms.

The army ordered an inquiry into the incident and the J&K Police registered an FIR under sections 115(2) and 126(2) of BNS on Ali's complaint. However, Ali said that the copy of the FIR he saw didn't mention any accused.

"We had reached near the house of my sister where we had to drop the wedding gifts, including furniture. Our vehicles were stationary when the patrolling party of the Army asked us to switch off our headlights and open cabin lights," Ali told ET. "When we tried to say that four of our men work for the forces and showed our ID cards they didn't even notice that and started checking our vehicles."

Later when Ali showed his ID card to the concerned army officer, he remarked, 'yeh professori ka card dikha rahe ho (you are showing a professor's card)," said Ali. "This is when his colleague started hitting me with the butt of his gun till I bled profusely from my head. My brother working for ITBP was also thrashed near the drain."

"It is disappointing that my more than 10 immediate family members work for the forces including the Army and this is what they do to us," said Ali. He also wrote a long social media post saying, "My entire family is in the Indian Army. I've always been proud of that. Proud of the uniform, the service, the sacrifice. But today, what I experienced shook that pride to the core. Without any reason, without any question, I was assaulted - hit on the head with a weapon by the very people I once trusted blindly."

Ali said the J&K Police had registered a case in this regard. "FIR number 42 has been registered under sections 115 (2) and 126 (2) of BNS, but there is no mention of the accused in this FIR," he said.

The Army also started an inquiry into the incident. "An incident has come to light wherein certain individuals were allegedly manhandled by Army personnel in Rajouri district. The Army had input on the likely movement of terrorists in a vehicle in this sensitive area. Accordingly, search operations were being conducted," the Army said in a statement in Jammu. "Preliminary information suggests that on being stopped, the individual tried to snatch weapons of the soldiers on duty and initiated a scuffle with them. However, an inquiry has been initiated. Should any personnel be found guilty of misconduct, strict action will be taken in accordance with the existing law."

"All sections of the society are requested to continue to cooperate and collaborate with the Indian Army for collective and comprehensive security in this sensitive area," the statement said.