J&K: Soldier accused of braid chopping, assaulted

To control the situation, police rushed to the spot and took the soldier into custody.

Clashes erupted in Reddi Chowkibal of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Tuesday after a soldier was beaten up by local residents on the suspicion that he was a braid chopper.

Local residents alleged that the Territorial Army personnel barged into the house of one Ghulam Nabi and sprayed some substance on his daughter Saima that left her unconscious. Later he, chopped off her hair, they alleged.

A local resident said, “Soon after the braid chopper came out of the house, locals raised alarm. We chased the man and caught hold of him. He later revealed that he is a Territorial Army personnel and belongs to Tangdhar.’’

To control the situation, police rushed to the spot and took the soldier into custody.

DIG, Baramulla, Vidhi Kumar Birdi denied involvement of the soldier in the braid chopping incident. He said, “A general convoy was passing by when some people blocked the road and started accusing him of braid chopping.”

Later, scores of people took to the streets in Kralpora to protest against braid-chopping incidents. The youths threw stones at security personnel who retaliated by firing teargas canisters.