Mob Lynches Police Officer Outside Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid On Suspicion Of Being Non-Muslim

A deputy superintendent of Jammu and Kashmir police was lynched by an unruly mob outside Jamia Masjid in Srinagar on Thursday night during the Shab-e-Qadr prayers after rumours of him belonging to an Indian security agency and being a non-Muslim spread in the area, The Hindu has reported.

"Another police officer sacrificed his life in line of duty. DySP Mohammed Ayub Pandith of Security attacked and beaten to death by a mob at Nowhatta last night," spokesperson of the Jammu and Kashmir police has said.

According to the daily, the policeman, who was carrying a pistol and was making a video of a demonstration held outside the Jamia Masjid, was spotted by a group of youngsters, who then dragged him around and beat him to death. The mob raised pro-Pakistan and pro-militant slogans after the incident.

The incident took place while the leader of Pakistan-sponsored Hurriyat Conference and the Kashmir Valley's head priest Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was inside the mosque, delivering his sermon on the occasion of Shab-e-Qadr.