Protest erupts in Kashmir after Army ‘desecrates’ Shiite leader’s photo

SRINAGAR — Protests erupted in Kashmir on Tuesday after Indian Army soldiers entered a house and allegedly burnt a photo of Iran’s slain Major General Qasem Soleimani.

As part of the ongoing Army census in Kashmir, the soldiers of Army’s 2 Rashtriya Rifles on Tuesday entered a residential house of Ghulam Rasool Banka at Malbuchan village in Budgam district.

“They lifted a photo of Soleimani from his house and later burnt it into ashes,” eyewitnesses and officials said. It angered the locals, triggering a protest and stone-pelting in the Shiite dominated areas of Budgam.

Soleimani is a revered figure among the Shiite community across the world.

On January 3, 2020, Soleimani, 62, along with six other officers was killed by the US in a drone attack while he was on his way to meet Iraq’s Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi.

“The Army soldiers desecrated our martyr Soleimani during a census. Amy has to apologize otherwise protests will continue,” said a protester.

Deputy Inspector General of Police, Central Kashmir Sujit Kumar told news agency Kashmir Dot Com (KDC), “There was an issue with a photo of a Shiite religious leader. It has been sorted out and the situation is normal now.”