Braid Cuttings Fuel Tension: Angry Mobs Assault Soldiers

Srinagar—With Kashmir’s braid-chopping ordeal showing no signs of abating and authorities apparently groping in the dark, the situation took a serious turn on Wednesday as the army opened fire on a crowd in Anantnag to rescue a colleague suspected of being involved in an attack, and three soldiers more were severely beaten up by residents in Baramulla.   

The firing, that left five persons injured, comes even as Srinagar and other parts of the Valley reported a number of more such mysterious attacks where women found with their braids cut often speak of unknown assailants and knock-out sprays.       

Authorities resorted to army cordon-and-search operations in a village in the Kulgam district after a braid-chopping attack during the night    

Vigilante groups have emerged in almost every locality in an attempt to guard their areas but locals and outsiders have taken the brunt of their anger, and now increasingly army personnel are being caught on suspicion.

Confrontations with attackers have left family members with serious injuries in at least two incidents so far, according to accounts by locals. Barely a day after a  woman suffered a neck injury in warding off a braid-chopper in Fateh Kadal, a Chattabal resident was left immobile when he fell trying to protect his wife, residents said.      

Chattabal witnessed angry protests after the overnight braid chopping report, with a large number of women hitting the roads with anti-government and anti-police slogans.

The protestors flayed the government for its failure to protect the honour and dignity of women.

“A miscreant barged into the secluded house of Bilal Ahmed Gojri, a conductor by profession who lives with his non-local wife,” residents in the area said. “The miscreant attacked the woman, and during the confrontation (with the attacker), Gojri lost his balance and fell down on the ground from the window. Gojri suffered injuries and is unable to move,” they said.

In Mahjoor Nagar, government forces fired into the air and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse stone-throwing protestors after a braid-chopping report in the area brought people into the streets.

Clashes continued for several hours, and shopkeepers downed shutters when forces fired a warning shot into the air, reports said.

Panic gripped the Dandarkha area of Batamallo after a victim was found unconscious with her braid cut. She was immediately rushed to the SMHS Hospital for treatment.

Protests also broke out in the Lasjan after a fresh braid chopping incident, and the police fired tear gas shells to disperse protestors who had tried to block traffic on the by-pass, reports said.

Army opened fire on a mob which was chasing suspected braid choppers in the Wullarhama village of Salar area in the Anantnag district on Wednesday.

“Unidentified miscreants tried to chop off the braid of the wife of Muhammad Zulifkar Sofi early today while agitated people caught hold of a suspect and thrashed him mercilessly,” local residents said.

“Shortly after the arrival of the army, the suspect tried to flee in an army vehicle, while agitated people stoned him and the army vehicle,” they said.

“The army fired upon the protesters, leaving left at least five of them wounded. They were immediately rushed to District Hospital Anantnag,” they said.

Some of the wounded were identified as Jana Begum, Muhammad Irshad and Abdul Rashid.

The area remained tense throughout the day as youth fought pitched battles with government forces, reports said.

Reports from Kulgam district said that the braid of a 13-year-old student, daughter of Nisar Ahmed Ganai was chopped off by unidentified miscreants. Eyewitnesses said that people ran after the suspect but he managed to escape from the spot.

“We were thinking of holding a massive protest on Wednesday morning against this overnight incident, but our village was cordoned off by Army which conducted a search operation here,”  a resident of Zangalpora in Kulgam said.

Three soldiers, who reportedly had been travelling in plain clothes, were severely beaten by a crowd in Baramulla after being mistaken as braid choppers

Reports from North Kashmir’s Baramulla district said that a group of people mistook three army soldiers in plain clothes as braid choppers and thrashed them mercilessly. Reports added that blood oozed out from the nose of one of the victim.

A police official said that three army men posted at Kitchama, were on way to Baramulla when a group of “miscreants” stopped them near Sheeri and after checking their identity cards thrashed them. “They were thrashed before police rescued them. An FIR has been registered and investigation taken up,” he added.

Pertinently, over a 100 incidents of braid chopping have occurred in different parts of Kashmir Valley during the past month while police is still clueless.

The victims have told their families and police that unknown persons cut their hair after knocking them unconscious with some spray.

The police have formed Special Investigation Teams to probe the incidents. However, so far the police and the authorities have been clueless.

The police have announced a reward of Rs six lakh for credible information leading to arrest of any person behind braid chopping incidents. So far, no arrests have been made.

At several places, vigilante mobs have thrashed innocents mistaking them for braid choppers.

The Chairperson State Commission for Women Wednesday questioned the investigation by Police and Special Investigation Teams (SIT) regarding the growing incidents of mysterious braid chopping, saying that they have failed to share details of the enquiry done so far.

“We had asked the SITs to share the details of investigation on daily basis but they so far failed to share the details even of a single case,” the Commission’s chairperson, Nayeema Mahjoor told KNS.

Mehjoor added that she doesn’t even know what SIT has investigated so far and how they are working and where are they working.

Nayeema Mahjoor said that the SIT has failed to share details of the investigation done over the braid chopping incidents.

“I believe some among the officials appointed in the SITs are not taking our directions seriously due to which they don’t share details so far,” she said, adding that she could have come up with the facts within one week in case she had proper resources.

“I can’t say that the SITs are not investigating the matter but we have to work on war footing basis to bring respite to the people especially to the womenfolk,” she added.

She said that the SITs constituted must share the details about the investigation over braid chopping to the commission.

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