Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Nov 17: A man who was hit by a teargas shell early this month in Srinagar died at SK Institute of Medical Sciences Soura last night. And the train services were partly restored in Srinagar today after remaining suspended since July 9 this year while police arrested two miscreants from Budgam for torching a school building.
A 75-year old man, Ghulam Muhammad Khan, former president of Secretariat Employees Union had gone out for a stroll outside his house when a teargas shell hit him on head in Ellahi Bagh near Government Housing Colony on 90-feet road Soura on November 2.
He was on ventilator since and medicos treating him had said that the chances of his survival were bleak. A senior police official informed that FIR No. 124/2016 has been lodged in the incident and investigations are on to find out the reasons behind his injury.
In the meantime, train services were resumed today in Kashmir after repair work was completed on Srinagar-Budgam stretch. The repair work on the other railways tracks is in progress and within ten days, the train service will be resumed between Banihal-Baramulla.
The train carrying handful of passengers plied this morning from Budgam railway station to Srinagar. The officials said the train services were partially started keeping in view the ongoing Board examination which started on November 14.
“As public transport was off the roads students were finding it hard to reach their examination centres. We cannot see poor students suffer as the train is meant to help common people,” an official said.
As per Railway officials, 15 pairs of train run regularly over 137-kilometer-long railway line from Banihal to Baramulla. These trains carry nearly 30,000 commuters including students and Government employees but the ongoing unrest has crippled the train services.
S Louis Anutham, senior Divisional Secretary Commissioner Railways, said the railway tracks have suffered minimum damage and within two weeks, train services will be fully restored.
“We have not received much damage but the railway tracks have to be physically checked which might take two to three weeks. We were continuously in touch with the locals who helped us to save the railway property. It’s their property and they have saved it themselves,” he said.
The Railways have suffered around Rs 400 crore loss due to unrest in Kashmir. Protesters also attacked several railway installations and damaged rail tracks at multiple places.
Police today said it have solved a case of school burning and also school ransacking by arresting two miscreants involved in these crimes in central Kashmir’s Budgam district.
A police spokesman said on October 27, Government School Habbar Lassipora was set ablaze by some unknown miscreants. The school suffered damages in this incident, he said, adding that a case under FIR number 68/2016 under section 436 RPC was registered.
He said it was also reported that a private educational institution namely Hanfia Educational Institute Shunglipora Habbar was also ransacked and damaged by some miscreants. In this regard a case under FIR number 69/2016 under sections 148, 427, 451, 506 RPC was registered, the spokesman said.
According the spokesman, in order to investigate both the cases, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted. “During the course of investigation, a number of suspects were brought for questioning. During questioning, it came to the fore that some miscreants used to create disturbances in the area by hurling stones on the vehicles as also damaging the public property by pelting stones.
“It also come to the fore that two of these miscreants namely Farooq Ahmad Malik alias Buda and Bilal Ahmad Malik alias Durani hatched a conspiracy to set on fire Government School Habbar Lassipora, as the school was located away from the human habitation. They managed some kerosene oil from their respective homes and used the same for setting the school on fire,” he said.
The spokesman said both these miscreants have confessed to their guilt. They had also ransacked Hanfia School. Both of them have been arrested and further investigation is going on, he added.
Miscreants today set afire Panchayat Ghar in Arigam village in district Pulwama. The fire tenders and police immediately reached the spot but the building was damaged in the fire.
In the meantime, shutdown for 132nd consecutive day paralysed life in Kashmir during which situation largely remained peaceful and a huge number of vehicles and pedestrian hit the roads.
Shops, commercial establishments, educational institutes and other offices were closed across Srinagar and other major towns. However, movement of private vehicles, auto-rickshaws, mini-buses and passenger cabs’ as well pedestrians was witnessed in civil line and uptown areas of the city.
Hundreds of vendors had set up their stalls in Lal Chowk area and large numbers of shoppers were also seen buying winter garments. In Old City, hundreds of security men were deployed in five police station areas of Srinagar’s Old City – MR Gunj, Nowhatta, Safa Kadal, Rainawari and Khanyar – since early morning.
In Old City, there was, however, civilian movement without any disruption.
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