India’s army chief has been accused of sanctioning the use of human shields after he defended soldiers in southern Kashmir who tied a civilian to their 4x4 to deter violent protests.

Footage of Farooq Ahmad Dar, 26, bound to the army vehicle first circulated in April, leading to separate military and police investigations and condemnation from human rights groups.



On Sunday, Gen Bipin Rawat, India’s chief of army staff, said his soldiers were fighting a non-traditional war in Kashmir that required “innovations”.

“The rules of engagements are there when the adversary comes face to face and fights with you,” he told the Press Trust of India. But Kashmir was “a dirty war”, he added. “You fight a dirty war with innovations.”

Rawat expressed frustration about the pressures faced by his soldiers, required to police their own citizens in an environment the Indian government has described as “warlike”.

“I wish these people, instead of throwing stones at us, were firing weapons at us. Then I would have been happy. Then I could do what I [want],” he said.

Kashmiris have been pushing for greater autonomy since 1947, when the territory was fought over and divided between the newly created countries of India and Pakistan. Organised and highly influential separatist movements in the Indian-controlled section want Kashmir to be granted independence or be absorbed into Pakistan.

A full-blown insurgency, sponsored by Pakistan, erupted in the 1990s but calmed after promises of a peace dialogue. That process has been neglected, however, and disillusionment is growing, along with the ranks of militant groups.



Dar says he was detained while passing through a town where women were throwing stones at soldiers. He alleges he was beaten, tied to a spare tyre on the bonnet of the vehicle and driven through neighbouring villages for up to five hours.

In footage of the incident, a soldier can be heard telling villagers: “This will be the fate of people who throw stones.”

The executive director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, tweeted that Rawat had supported the use of human shields.

Indian army chief shows criminal leadership, backing as "innovative" troops' use of Kashmir man as a human shield. https://t.co/majte50Fis pic.twitter.com/cHq5D2tAdD — Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) May 29, 2017

The day Dar was tied to the vehicle, byelections were marred by violent protests in which Indian security forces killed eight people. Turnout for the vote was the lowest in two decades, but Dar was among the few who cast a ballot.



Nearly 100 civilians were killed last July and August during the most violent summer in Kashmir in five years. More than a dozen people have been killed this year in clashes between security forces and protesters armed with stones and sometimes crude explosives.

Curfews and internet bans were imposed across Kashmir, including in the city of Srinagar at the weekend, after protests following the killing of a senior militant leader by Indian security forces.

Last week, the army major who ordered Dar to be tied to the vehicle was awarded a commendation for his counter-insurgency work in the region.

Unusually, the officer, Nitin Leetul Gogoi, was permitted to speak to journalists to defend his actions. He claimed that he tied Dar to the vehicle in order to prevent violent protests from escalating further and accused him of instigating demonstrations.

Rawat said he gave Gogoi the award, despite him being under investigation, in order to bolster army morale.

“People are throwing stones at us, people are throwing petrol bombs at us,” he said. “If my men ask me what do we do, should I say just wait and die?

“Adversaries must be afraid of you and at the same time, your people must be afraid of you. We are a friendly army, but when we are called to restore law and order, people have to be afraid of us.”

Amnesty International has described Dar’s treatment as “cruel, inhuman and degrading”, and amounting to torture, but the army has been backed by senior government leaders including the attorney general, Mukul Rohatgi.



The human rights lawyer Indira Jaising said Rawat’s comments pointed to a disturbing mindset among military leaders about their role in Kashmir.

“Even with enemies there are dos and don’ts,” she said. “But here we are dealing with our own population.”

Tying Dar to the 4x4 was “on the face of it illegal”, she added. “Whatever justifications are to be found in international law, they are to be found in times of war against an enemy. But we are neither in a time of war, nor dealing with enemies.”

The Hindustan Times called Rawat’s remarks “highly regrettable”.

“It is one thing for hypernationalistic paper patriots to celebrate Maj Gogoi with unthinking enthusiasm, but coming from the army chief, this is a message with potentially dangerous consequences,” the newspaper said.