Major who tied protester to jeep as human shield in Kashmir awarded by Army

Major Nitin Gogoi, against whom an inquiry is on, has been awarded a Commendation Card for sustained efforts during counter-insurgency operations.

Major Nitin Gogoi, an army officer who tied protester to jeep as human shield in Jammu and Kashmir has been awarded the medal for counter-insurgency operations by COAS for sustained efforts in counter insurgency operations.

Army officials did not say if the human shield incident had anything to do with the award.

A video, shot on April 9 during the Srinagar by-polls held amid violent incidents, showed a man, later identified as Farooq Ahmad Dar, being tied to the bonnet of an army jeep with a placard in Badgam of Jammu and Kashmir.

The video had gone viral, sparking anger on social media. In the video, the army is heard announcing "this is how stone throwers will be dealt with". The security forces had maintained that it was purely an act of defence.

While many have denounced his move to use a human shield, many in the Defence establishment have hailed the move as one that prevented violence in the Valley.

On April 15, the Army constituted a court of inquiry in the incident, and a report is pending. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley, referring to the incident on Friday, had backed the officer, saying it should not be forgotten that the officer had responsibility to save the lives of those involved in the election process as well as the crowd that had gathered. Gogoi also got support from both serving and former Army officers.

OneIndia News