The families of the all the five pellet wounded teenagers from Kashmir Valley admitted in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) New Delhi have claimed that their affected kids were not part of protest when pellets were aimed at them to damage their eyes.Five people including a girl have been undergoing treatment (rental surgeries) in a private eye-ward at AIIMS in New Delhi. All these victims are below 20 and have suffered serious eye-injuries. These victims include Muhammad Asif from Khanabal Anantnag, Junaid Ahmed a resident of Chorot Qazigund, Firdous Ahmed and Zahid Ahmed both from Apple Town Sopore and Insha from Sedho hamlet of South Kashmir’s Shopian district.Among the five victims Insha and Firdous Ahmed have injuries in both the eyes while rest of the three victims has their one eye involved. “We can’t say whether they can regain their eye-sight or not. We are trying our level best but everything will become clear after surgeries,” a Doctor at AIIMS eye-ward told Kashmir based news agency CNS.The Deputy Medical Superintendent Eye-Section AIIMS said that all available resources are being utilized to save these kids from getting blind. “It will be premature to say anything at this point of time,” he added.
The families of all the five victims said that their kids were not part of any protest march when they received pellets. “My 12 year old brother Muhammad Asif suffered pellet injuries while he was out to get a biscuit packet from a nearby shop. The pellets hit his eyes damaging one of them,” the elder brother of the victim said.Another youth Junaid according to his family was out to fetch medicine for his ailing mother when armed forces used shot guns and sprayed pellets on protesters. “Junaid was trapped and suffered pellet injuries,” the family members said.Insha from Shopian district whose both eyes have seriously damaged was on the window of her house when men in uniform targeted her with pellets. According to her family she was targeted ‘intentionally and directly.’ The family members of Zahid Ahmed and Firdous Ahmed from Sopore town also said that their kids were not protesting when CRPF targeted them with lethal pellets.Pertinently, 45 youth including minor five years old Nasir Altaf from Kokarnag have been undergoing eye treatment at SMHS hospital Srinagar. Twenty-two persons are with injury in left eye, twenty are with injury in right eye and three persons Aijaz Ahmed Mir of Bahrampora Sopore, Muhammad Aalim Dar of Narbal and Adnan Shabir Bhat of Safakadal Srinagar have injuries in both the eyes.(CNS)