Srinagar, Jun 05: Police today said it has booked two administrators of “self-styled news groups for spreading rumours.
According to a police spokesman, police in Awantipora received information through “reliable sources” that “some self-styled news groups viz ‘Kashmir Zone’, ‘Hamza Hizbi’ and ‘Quick News’ have “uploaded/circulated photographs of some youth with malicious intention on social networking sites whereby rumors are being spread that the said youth are whistleblowers of police/security forces.”
“The operators/administrators of these self-styled news groups in pursuance of a well-knit criminal conspiracy had spread the said rumors with sole motive to harm the reputation of said youth to defame them and to cause harm to their life and safety,” police spokesman said.
He said a case (FIR no. 89/2018 U/S 501, 505 RPC read with 120-B RPC) has been registered on the receipt of this information at Police Station Awantipora and investigation was set into the motion.
During the course of investigation, “it convincingly came to fore that the said self-styled news groups had spread the rumors with sole aim to defame said persons and cause harm to their life and safety,” spokesman said.
He said two administrators of these self-styled news groups — Sajad Ahmad Mir, son of Ghulam Rasool Mir of Frastalbal Pampore and Shahid Ahmad Bhat, son of Ghulam Ahmad Bhat of Namlabal Pampore have been identified and apprehended accordingly.
Efforts are being made to identify the other administrators of such self-styled news groups so that they can be booked under law. Process for getting the said self-styled news groups blocked has also been initiated, police spokesman informed.
