COVID-19: Many arrested for defying lockdown by attending funeral of Sopore militant

Many people were arrested by police for defying lockdown, imposed to curtail spread of Coronavirus, when they attended the funeral of a Jash-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant in north Kashmir district of Baramulla, official sources said here on Friday.

They said police raided several residences in Zaingeer in the apple township of Sopore last night and arrested many people. “These people were arrested for violating social distancing protocols by attending the funeral of the militant on Wednesday,” they added.

Police had filed an FIR after a video surfaced on social media, including Facebook and Twitter, in which hundreds of people could be seen attending the funeral of the JeM commander in village Arampora in Sopora. “After filing the FIR, police was able to identify many people, who attended the funeral, with the help of videos and pictures posted on social media,” they added.

A top JeM commander, Sajad Nawab Dar, was on Wednesday killed in an encounter which ensued when security forces launched a Cordon and Search Operation (CASO) in Sopore.