Communally sensitive video: Kishtwar, Doda observe complete shutdown in protest

Srinagar: People observed a complete shutdown in Doda and Kishtwar districts on Monday to protest against the incendiary words uttered by a person in a communally sensitive video that has gone viral on social media.

Sources said that there was complete shutdown in the two districts as shops and other business establishments remained closed while people stayed off the roads to register their protest against the derogatory words used by the person.

Police and paramilitary deployments were also placed at key locations to avoid any ‘law and order’ issue in Kishtwar, sources added.

“There is undeclared curfew like restrictions here,” they added.

SSP Kishtwar, Harmeet Singh said there was “no curfew in the district however there is bandh as people had called for it.”

A police official in Doda said there was bandh in the district called by the members of a particular community.

Police on Sunday had registered a case after the video went viral on social media in which a leader of Bharat Raksha Manch is seen speaking in derogatory language against the spiritual head of a religious community.

Following this, the ‘Islami Markaz Majili Shura, Kishtwar’ had written a letter to DC and SSP Kishtwar to take cognizance of the matter and arrest the accused.

Assuring strict legal action against those who created or shared such content, a police spokesperson said the video seemed to have been “maliciously posted to create communal tension”.

“In this incident, cognisance has been taken and an investigation launched in Pacca Danga Police Station, Jammu,” the spokesperson said and appealed to people “not to fall prey to the agenda of anti-national elements”.

IGP Jammu, Mukesh Singh said police have lodged FIR No. 100 under sections 153-A and 295-A IPC in police station Pacca Danga and have arrested two persons including the one who had used the derogatory words.

“Jammu police have begun the investigation and so far have arrested two people. One of them is Satpal who had used the incendiary language, another one arrested is Deepak. There was a third one in the video named Rohit, police is looking for him,” the IGP said.

He appealed people not to share such videos.

In the video taken by a local news portal, the Bharat Raksha Manch leader is seen reportedly speaking against three separate incidents involving members from two different communities.