The police on Thursday said they have arrested several youths in Srinagar who were allegedly part of “a large unruly mob that assembled near an encounter site” on Wednesday in Nowgam area, where three local Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were killed in an anti-militancy operation. A large unruly mob from adjacent areas consisting of boys carrying lathis and stones assembled near the encounter site and tried to pelt stones at the deployed personnel, the police noted.
The police said they used smoke shells to disperse the mob, as the security personnel were asking them not to approach the encounter site before being cleared of debris of explosives.
“Some youths were identified from videos and from initial investigation. Many of them were picked up and are being examined in the said case. Some of them have been arrested as well,” the police stated, without divulging details of the number of youths held.
The police have asked all citizens to stay away from encounter sites “so to ensure their own safety, keeping in view the likelihood of leftover explosives from the terrorists”.
