Kashmir Digits

The Jammu and Kashmir Police have booked medical students of SKIMS Hospital Soura and Government Medical College (GMC) in Karan Nagar, Srinagar under UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) for cheering and celebrating Pakistan’s 10 wicket win over India in the T20 World Cup.

The students have also been charged under Section 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code.

Unidentified officials said that the accused persons have not yet been identified and the police were conducting an investigation.

Multiple videos of Government Medical College (GMC) and Sher E Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) in Srinagar had gone viral in which some students could be seen chanting slogans against India and in praise of Pakistan. 

Interestingly the incident took place even as Home Minister Amit Shah was on his three-day visit to Jammu & Kashmir.

“The FIRs have been registered in Soura and Karan Nagar Police Stations of Srinagar city under sections 13 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and 505 of the Indian Penal Code. Our probe is currently underway. We will set an example through this case,” a senior officer of J&K Police informed.

“We are going through all videos in detail. Most videos that have surfaced are old and from 2017. Hence we have to be very careful. Some videos of GMC and SKIMS are from Sunday night. Investigation will clear everything”, J&K police sources further said.

As per an FIR filed at Soura police station (under FIR No. 104/2021), “during intervening night of 24 and 25 October 2021 after Pakistan won the one day cricket match, students pursuing MBBS and other medical degrees residing in the ‘un-married’ hostel of SKIMS Soura raised slogans and burst firecrackers”.

It says that in this connection a case was registered under section 13 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), 105A and 505 IPC.

Laws for Kashmir Students Only?

While the government was swift in its action to book Kashmiri students no action was taken against those people who had beaten up Kashmiri students in Punjab following the Pakistan victory.

Students from Bhai Gurdas Institute of Engineering and Technology in Punjab’s Sangrur district shared videos of the “attack” from inside their hostel post the match. Similar reports also came in from the Rayat Bahrat University in Kharar.

In a video from Sangrur college, one of the students accused the security guard for allegedly allowing a group of students from UP to enter their rooms and assault them. Later, Punjab Police officials reached the college and spoke to the Kashmiri students.

So far no action has been taken in this regard and time will tell if the laws are meant for Kashmir students only.