2 Cops 'Violently And Brutally' Assaulted In Leh, Culprits On Run

 Two policemen, including a sub-inspector of Ladakh Police, suffered serious injuries after they were "violently and brutally" assaulted by a group of miscreants, a senior officer said here on Monday.

Senior Superintendent of Police (Leh) PD Nitya said an FIR has been registered under relevant sections, including attempt to murder, against eight absconding accused and special teams have been set up to arrest them.

"Sub-Inspector Mohammad Jani and Head Constable Ghulam Rasool from Leh police station were violently and brutally assaulted by a group of youths at a restaurant during the intervening night of Sunday and Monday," Ms Nitya told reporters in Leh.

She said the policemen had gone to the restaurant after receiving information about some youths fighting and creating a nuisance. However, once they reached the restaurant, they came under attack, resulting in injuries to both of them.

"They were evacuated to a hospital and Mr Rasool was later referred to the tertiary hospital at Soura in Srinagar for specialised treatment," the senior officer said, adding that Rs 10,000 was sanctioned for each to meet the immediate medical expenses.

Eight accused have been identified and an FIR under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including attempt to murder, was registered against them. Special teams have been constituted to arrest them, the officer said.

Ms Nitya said the accused were involved in attacking some taxi drivers from Kargil some time ago and were subsequently arrested.

"All checkpoints have been alerted to ensure they are arrested soon," she said, requesting people to share information about their presence with the police.

The police are not taking the incident lightly and appropriate action in accordance with the law will be taken against anyone who tries to provide shelter to them, she added.

The incident sparked strong condemnation from Kargil, the hometown of the injured policemen, with leaders of political parties demanding stern action against the culprits.

Chairman and Chief Executive Councillor of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (Kargil) Feroz Khan said he has written to Lt Governor Brigadier (Retd) BD Mishra and also spoke to Additional Director General of Police (Ladakh) DS Jamwal, seeking their personal intervention in bringing the culprits to book.

"This is a heinous crime that has been committed and the culprits needs to be dealt with sternly," Mr Khan said.

Social and political activist from Kargil, Sajjad Hussain, condemned the incident and said on Twitter, "…Let us unite as a community to condemn violence against those who serve and protect us and work together to uphold the values of peace and safety in our region."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)