Many cops were injured and several police vehicles were damaged after a group of youth attacked a convoy of police near Karimabad village, some five kilometers from South Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Wednesday. Reliable sources told CNS that in a bid to keep youth away from militancy and to generate employment opportunities, “SPO Bharti’ was conducted in Karimabad village in which hundreds of unemployed participated. Karimabad village hit the headlines recently after few youth from the village including the security guard of Roads and Building Minister Syed Altaf Bukhari fled along with the service rifle and later on joined the militant ranks. A police official said that during the day long process, some ‘miscreants’ kept on hurling stones on the police, but they didn’t respond at all. “The PSO Bharti was conducted under the supervision of top district police officials and everything went smooth throughout the day,” he said.
He added that after the culmination of the process, as the police parties in vehicles were returning to district headquarters scores of youth attacked police vehicles injuring several policemen. “The windowpanes of some of our vehicles were damaged in the attack,” he said adding that police exercised maximum restraint.However, locals alleged that police burst tear-gas shells and when they failed to control the protesting youth, they called in Army and Para-military troopers who according to them let loose a reign of terror in the village. “What was our fault. They (Government Forces) thrashed us, broke the windowpanes of our houses and shops, despite the fact that a handful of youth attacked them,” said a group of villagers to CNS. They added that it has become a routine for the gun wielding forces to beat up innocent people who barely approve, encourage or participate in stone-pelting. (CNS)