Many people including women on Thursday staged a protest, demanding “justice” after a woman died of “heart attack” allegedly during a police “raid” at a house in Mirakshah colony of Batapora Habak in the outskirts of Srinagar.
The slogan shouting protesters, including the family of the deceased woman, demanded stern action against police personnel who were part of the raid.
“I along with my mother used to sleep in a particular room. There was some knocking sound outside our residence and I informed my mother accordingly. I opened the door and saw policemen. They pushed me aside and entered inside,” daughter of the woman told reporters during the protest.
Then they asked for my brother and told me that they want to interrogate him. I told them he was sleeping and was not keeping well from yesterday.
“Some of them (policemen) in the meanwhile went upstairs and carried searches,” she said, adding, “Then they took my brother but my father did not let them take him and told them to take him along also. Then they went outside and my mother fell on Varanda. A policeman told our relative (a woman) to take care of her and she responded my mother is no more. Soon after hearing the same, they left my brother and fled. They took away his mobile.”
Javed Ahmad, the deceased woman’s son said police came at 2:30 a.m. They were talking to my father outside while I was sleeping. They woke me up and sought my phone. I gave them and showed them the pattern,” he said, adding, “There was my laptop. First they tried to take it along but then told me to leave it there. My father and mother held me up and took me outside . In the meantime my mother had fallen.”
Javed said that policemen told him to come to Zakura police station “even as our house falls within the jurisdiction of police station Nigeen.”
The protesters demanded justice and those guilty be brought to book. “Today it has happened with us, it can happen with somebody else tomorrow,” they said and reiterated demand for justice.
A top police officer told GNS that “We are collecting the factual details”.