40 Army personnel booked after storming Kashmir police station

40 Army personnel booked after storming Kashmir police station 

The Jammu and Kashmir Police have registered a case against several Indian Army personnel, including the commanding officer and a major of the 17 Rashtriya Rifles (RR), for allegedly storming the Atholi police station in Kishtwar district.

Those named in the FIR include Colonel N Arun Gandhi, Major Vikas Sharma, Naib Subedar Shanker Gurkhe and sepoys Raj Kumar, Rahul Kumar, Anoop Singh and Omkar Ingale, along with 30-40 unnamed soldiers.

Soldiers booked under several sections

They have been booked under several sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) including unlawful assembly, rioting and attempt to murder.

The charges also include Section 121(1) of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and Section 3(1) of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The charges span from unlawful assembly, rioting, criminal trespass, voluntarily causing grievous hurt, assaulting public servants, attempt to murder, and criminal intimidation.

What led to the incident?

The incident occurred when Kishtwar district commissioner Pankaj Sharma's convoy had a run-in with a soldier's private vehicle on a narrow road.

When the personnel accompanying the DC instructed the soldier to pull his vehicle aside to allow the convoy to pass, an altercation erupted.

After the argument, police towed the soldier's vehicle to the Atholi police station.