Kapurthala: Kashmiri shawl seller looted, second incident in 3 weeks

In a second incident in the past three weeks, a Kashmiri shawl seller was robbed of his belongings, including a bag containing handlooms (shawls and suits), ₹8,000 cash and a mobile phone in Kapurthala.

In a second incident in the past three weeks, a Kashmiri shawl seller was robbed of his belongings, including a bag containing handlooms (shawls and suits), ₹8,000 cash and a mobile phone in Kapurthala.

In a second incident in the past three weeks, a Kashmiri shawl seller was robbed of his belongings, including a bag containing handlooms (shawls and suits), ₹8,000 cash and a mobile phone in Kapurthala.

The incident happened in the wee hours on Tuesday when victim Fareed Ahmad Bajad from Karlpora in Kupwara was attacked by unidentified motorcycle-borne miscreants near Kapurthala’s Aujla railway crossing. In his complaint to the police, Bajad said the robbers took away shawls worth ₹25,000, ₹8,000 cash and his mobile phone. He also suffered injuries during a scuffle with the robbers.

Sharing the details of the incident on his X account, Nasir Khuehami, national convener of the Jammu and Kashmir students association (JKSA), said he has spoken to Punjab chief secretary KAP Sinha and Kapurthala senior superintendent of police (SSP) Gaurav Toora about the incident.

“The chief secretary informed me that necessary instructions have been issued to ensure swift action. SSP Kapurthala Gaurav Toora told me that action is being taken against the miscreants involved. So far, an FIR has been lodged against the accused, and efforts are underway to arrest them,” Khuehami said.

He added that the victim was thrashed, punched, slapped, and dragged, leaving him with multiple bruises all over his body.

SSP Toora said the teams have already been formed to arrest the accused involved in the incident.

“The case has been registered under Section 304 (snatching) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the accused. We have also collected the CCTV footage from the area for identification of the accused,” he said.

Earlier, on January 18, Shafi Khoja, a Kupwara native, was assaulted and looted of his belongings. The police had then arrested three miscreants and recovered the stolen goods and cash.