Srinagar:
Despite clear instructions that human rights violations will not be tolerated, there has been another instance where the Army has been found wanting.
The man who the Army claimed was a foreign militant killed in an encounter three days ago was identified as 70-year-old Habibullah Khan - a beggar from Kupwara in Jammu and Kashmir.
The revelation triggered immediate protests.
"He was killed and dubbed as militant by the Army in Handwara. When we saw his photo we identified him," said Shafiq Ahmad Khan, a relative.
The post-mortem report suggests the man was shot from close range. Police have lodged a murder case against the Army's 6 Rashtriya Rifles.
"The body was identified on Friday; he is a resident of Dolab. We are investigating and the FIR has already been lodged," said Kuldeep Khuda, DGP, Jammu and Kashmir.
On Wednesday, the Army claimed to have killed a foreign militant, found an AK Rifle and ammunition during a joint operation with the police. But the police denied being part of any such an encounter.
Today, the Army came up with another version that contradicts their earlier claims.
"We expect that the deceased was either being used as a guide or may have been held as human shield by terrorists who melted away into the jungles," said Defence spokesman Lt Col Brar.
But what about the arms and ammunition shown to establish that the man killed was a militant?
"The weapon which was found next to the terrorist may have been dropped, possibly by fleeing terrorists when they came under fire," said Brar.
It is not the first time when innocent people are killed in fake encounters and branded as foreign terrorist in Jammu and Kashmir. But what's more shocking this time is that a 70-year-old, frail, greybeard man was passed off as a success in the Army's fight against militancy.