A 21-year-old man, Mohammad Parvez, was killed during a shootout in Jammu’s Satwari area, triggering protests from his family and tribal activists who allege it was a “fake encounter.”
Parvez, a resident of Javed Nagar, Nikki Tawi, sustained bullet injuries and was declared dead at the Government Medical College, Jammu. Outside the hospital, relatives and community members gathered in protest, demanding an impartial probe.
“This is a fake encounter. Parvez had no FIRs against him. If the police had any suspicions, they should have arrested him legally,” said Talib Hussain, a prominent tribal rights activist. “He and his brother-in-law were stopped at a checkpoint and fired upon without reason.”
Hussain also rejected police claims that the deceased was involved in drug smuggling. “For months, Gujjars have been targeted in the name of cattle or drug smuggling. We stayed silent before, but this cannot go unchallenged,” he said, citing other controversial cases, including the alleged custodial death of Gujjar youth Altaf Lali in Bandipora.
Parvez’s family said he worked in sand mining along the Tawi River and had no links to criminal activity.
According to SP City South Ajay Sharma, the shootout occurred during a raid on a suspected drug den in the Phallain Mandal area as part of “Operation Clean-up” — an ongoing crackdown on drug traffickers, gangsters, and extortionists.
“The team was fired upon by suspected drug peddlers. In the retaliatory action, one person was critically injured and later died,” said Sharma.
Police have not disclosed whether any weapons or contraband were recovered at the site.
Officials said an inquiry has been initiated to ascertain the full circumstances of the incident.
Meanwhile, activists and Parvez’s relatives are calling for an independent probe, alleging that the police are using extrajudicial force without accountability.
