Anti-India clashes after soldiers kill man in Kashmir

Indian soldiers shot and killed a young man at a checkpoint in the Himalayan region of Indian-administered Kashmir on Wednesday, triggering anti-India protests and clashes in the disputed territory.

India’s Central Reserve Police Force said Mehrajuddin Shah was driving a car and ignored signals to stop at two checkpoints on the western outskirts of Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir’s main city.

The force said the soldiers feared an attack because a military convoy was passing by at the time. 

It said in a statement that a soldier shot the victim “when the car didn’t stop despite warning shots”.

The man’s father, Ghulam Nabi Shah, denied the police account, saying his 25-year-old son did not drive through any checkpoints, and soldiers first stopped him and then shot him. 

“He was stopped and was then shot,” the father said. “Had they fired on the vehicle; it would have had bullets marks. He was deliberately stopped and fired upon.”

A witness said the victim stopped his car when soldiers signalled him.

According to The Associated Press news agency, a witness said Shah was shot in the back as he was getting into his car after talking to soldiers at a checkpoint. 

The incident comes a week after Indian troops killed Riyaz Naikoo, a former maths teacher-turned-rebel commander.

His death sparked days of protests and clashes in the Muslim-majority region which is claimed by both India and Pakistan. 

As news of Shah’s death spread in his village, hundreds of men and women began chanting: “Go India, go back” and “We want freedom”. They demanded the victim’s body be returned to the family for burial.

Authorities did not immediately hand over the body.

As security forces moved in to stop the villagers from marching, hundreds threw stones at the troops, who fired shotgun pellets and tear gas to quell the protests. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the clashes. 

This report was edited by Al Jazeera NewsFeed’s Hassan Ghani.