KARNAH (Kupwara): Amid confusion and chaos during an army recruitment rally, Army allegedly fired in air to disperse job aspirants in Chamkote area of Karnah region in frontier district Kupwara on Tuesday when the failed candidates allegedly went on a rampage, setting ablaze the fencing of the Territorial Army arena.
Two job aspirants reportedly sustained shell injuries while the incident provoked the hundreds of youth who resorted to violence and attacked Army arena with stones. Besides the two youth, 23 persons, including eight policemen and four soldiers were injured during the melee.
Witnesses said that Army had organized a recruitment rally to fill up 7 vacancies in Territorial Army. Around 4,000 job aspirants turned up to appear in physical tests. Trouble started when Army personnel conducting physical tests allowed only Matriculate candidates to appear in the physical test as the number of aspirants were beyond the expectation of the officials.
The Middle pass candidates who were reportedly not permitted entry into the arena and were ignored and they staged protest while some of them resorted to stone-pelting. Agitated aspirants put the fencing on fire while army personnel resorted to aerial firing to disperse them, witnesses added. During the initial clashes, two youth were injured whom police identified as Arshid Hussain Sheikh son of Muhammad Suliman of Kandi Karna and Sajad Ahmed Moghal son of Abdul Qayoom of Bagh Baila.
One of the youth received injury in his leg while another in arm and both of them were moved shifted to the hospital, a police official said adding that the aerial firing and shelling incident provoked agitated youth and they resorted to massive stone-pelting after wards.
Additional police personnel were rushed to the spot to bring the situation under control. Police fired tear-smoke shells to disperse the youth.
A police official who was on spot said that 23 persons including 8 policemen and 4 Army personnel were injured during the clashes. I am not sure but probably army fired in air to disperse violent job aspirants who were trying to cross the wall to attack the soldiers, he said.
He said that recruitment drive was called off after the violence.
Armys Srinagar based spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel N N Joshi said that some aspirants who failed in physical tests started trouble when they set fencing ablaze, pelted stones attaining threatening posture. “The soldiers, sensing danger to life and property, fired few blank rounds which do not cause any injuries. The injuries have been caused by stone pelting,” he added.
The Army spokesperson made it clear that there has been no change in the recruitment criteria.
Political rivalry led to trouble
What happened in Chahmkot Karnah during Army recruitment rally was the outcome of the political rivalry between two factions of a particular political party in the area.
A CNS report said that everything was going on smoothly when the supporters of one faction allegedly instigated others for violence. The supporters of one faction made some job aspirants believe that a political leader has used his influence and has already got his blue-eyed candidates selected for the job. This infuriated some youth who felt dejected and resorted to violence, a top government official said and added that for personal interests the leaders of these two factions let the people of the area suffer who were beaten to pulp by Army during mob controlling exercise.
Please dont mention my name. Being the top official of the area and a witness to all this fuss, I am telling you with authority that the supporters of these two factions were the main source of trouble. To get their supporters adjusted in the Army, both these factions created chaos and fuss as a result common job aspirants suffered immensely, the official, said adding that a thorough probe into the matter will expose these political leaders.
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