Chaos gripped Gursai village in Poonch district after some police personnel resorted to aerial firing on being allegedly attacked by the locals on Thursday evening. Reports said that a police team from Poonch went to Gursai to arrest a suspected drug peddler. The cops, wearing civilian clothes, managed to nab the accused before a verbal altercation took place between them and the locals. The altercation turned into a scuffle, after which the cops fired three to four shots in the air, reports said. Senior Superintendent of Police, Poonch, Ramesh K Angral, told Greater Kashmir: “A police team had gone to Gursai after they received some inputs in a drug-related case. The team successfully arrested a suspected drug peddler and recovered a consignment of drugs from his possession.” As soon as the cops tried to board their vehicles, the SSP said, a mob, comprising of locals, assembled.“The mob attacked the personnel and managed to free the accused, who fled from the spot,” Angral said. In order to save their lives and disperse the mob, the cops fired some shots in the air, the SSP claimed, adding that the police have taken cognizance of the incident. Meanwhile, the locals said, “Some people, wearing civilian clothes, came into our village and tried to overpower a local without a reason. On being asked who they were, the men fired three to four shots in the air.” Later, a large number of locals assembled on the spot and blocked the Gursai main road. They raised slogans against the police and accused the department of “high-handedness”. Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Mendhar, Neeraj Padyar, and Station House Officer, Gursai, later visited the spot and pacified the protesters by assuring them that a thorough probe will be conducted. On this assurance, the protest was called off.
