Even as public anger over the Shopian double murder seethed, the death of four young men at the hands of the police and CRPF in Baramulla town has once again rocked the state. A case of an alleged kidnapping of a teenage girl, bungled by the administration and exploited by certain political elements, led to the death of Saleem, 19, Amir, 17, Fayaz, 24, Tariq Malik, 23. The picturesque North Kashmir town, which has witnessed the death of ten youths in similar protests since August 2008, has been on the boil for the last three days.

The current turmoil began on June 17 with Ghulam Ahmad Ganai of Binner village lodging a complaint with Baramulla Police that his 15-year-old-daughter, Rehana, was kidnapped by 25-year-old Mehraj-ud-din Marazi of Sheeri village. The police registered an FIR and arrested Marazi’s brother-in-law Mohammad Yousuf Bhat as an accomplice on June 28. Bhat’s wife Hasina Akther— the sister of the alleged kidnapper — visited the station that day to plead for her husband’s release, and later contacted a local TV channel, accusing the police of demanding a bribe to release her husband.

Akther then made an appearance at Baramulla’s main chowk in the evening, accusing the police of demanding money and seeking sexual favors in lieu of releasing her husband. The accusations triggered a protest, with angry youth forcing shopkeepers to down their shutters. Clashes with the police continued till midnight, even as the district administration tried to roll back the damage by clarifying that Hasina was the sister of the alleged kidnapper and airing an interview in which the father of the kidnapped girl stated the same. Later that night, the police recovered the kidnapped girl from Bemina, Srinagar, along with Mehraj-ud-din Marazi. The police claims that the girl was found after Hasina’s husband identified her.

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