Kashmiri artisan speaks out after being paraded as human shield by Indian army

Denying the label of being a 'stone-pelter' put on him by the Indian army, Kashmiri youth Farooq Ahmed Dar said he endured a four-hour-long ordeal of being paraded in a village tied to the front of a jeep as a warning to protesting locals.

Following public outcry on social media, Chief Minister of Indian Occupied Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti, responded to the incident by ordering police to submit a report, while the Indian army said it was analysing the video and its credibility.

In an interview with the Indian Express, the 26-year-old explained that he was "not a stone-pelter. Never in my life have I thrown stones [at anyone]. I work as an embroiderer of shawls, and I know some carpentry. This is what I do."

Dar does not plan to file any complaints or reports. "We are poor people; what can we complain about? I live alone with my asthmatic mother who is 75-years-old. I am scared. Anything can happen to me," he said.

Fazie, his mother, also holds the same view. "No, we don’t want any inquiry. […] I don’t want to lose him. He is the only one I have to look after me in my old age,” she said.

Dar’s hand was injured in the threatening display that continued through many villages – including Utligam, Sonpa, Najan, Chakpora, Hanjiguroo, Rawalpora, Khospora, and Arizal – totalling almost 25 kilometres.

The youth was on his way to attend a funeral ritual alongside his brother and a neighbour. It was when they saw a protest being carried out by women in Utligam that they stopped, and where he was taken by the Indian army men.

“That was my big mistake. […] They beat me up, tied me to the front of the jeep, and paraded me across nine villages,” Dar told the publication. He added that the army soldiers dared people to “‘come throw stones at one of your own’. People were running away. They were scared. I was told not to utter a word to anyone or they would shoot me.”

The painful trip ended at the Rashtriya Rifles (RR) camp in Raiyari, where he was kept for three hours. He was only given tea and sent to a medical attendant, who bandaged his hand.

Through his brother's calls to friends in Raiyari, he was discovered. The Army major heading the camp just said that he would be given to a "responsible person".

An embroidery worker, Dar – who is midway through completing a pashmina scarf – lamented that he has to pause for some time. “I don’t think I will be able to finish it for a while now. It needs both hands,” he commented.

The parading episode garnered harsh criticism all over.

Mufti condemned the action, calling it intolerable, and showed concern for Dar.

Omar Abdullah, former CM of Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK), also shared his sentiments on Twitter. “This is just so shocking,” he said, adding that he was “[…] also outraged that the video of the youth on the jeep won't generate the same anger.”

Tanvir Sadiq of National Conference called the incident "shocking" and "shameful".

However, Army spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said: "The contents of the video are being verified and investigated," while DG Police S P Vaid stated that "all details and the circumstances in which these videos were shot" need to be investigated.