The use of pellet guns by the forces, as a means to “quell” protests in Kashmir, has caused severe eye injuries to over 190 persons, many of them on the verge of turning blind. While this human tragedy has once again shifted focus on the demand for banning the use of the lethal weapon, the government continues to engage in lips service only.
|| ZAHOOR GULZAR
On July 23, Insha Mushtaq Lone, the 9th grade student who lost her both eyes due to the pellet injuries, was flown to New Delhi for treatment at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after doctors at SMHS ruled out any chances of her regaining the vision. On the very first day when she was shifted to the hospital the doctors had termed the damage caused to her eyes by the pellets as irreparable. The pellets fired by the forces inside the kitchen of the Lone house had hit 14-year Insha in her face, piercing her both eyes. While the pellets had ruptured Insha’s right eye, her left eye had got ruptured.
“At the best she would be fitted with artificial devices in place of her both eyes (at the AIIMS) that will give her some sense of vision,” said a senior eye specialist at the SMHS. Among the toppers in her school at Sedow village in Shopian district, Insha is one of the six persons who have been rushed to the AIIMS for treatment of their eye (s) pierced by the lethal pellets.
In the past more than three weeks after the protests broke out in Kashmir following the killing of militant commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani, the SMHS admitted over 190 persons including minors, teenagers and girls with pellet injuries in one or both eyes, most of them from south Kashmir which has been the epicenter of the protests. Such was the rush of the eye-injury cases during first week after the killing of Burhan that the hospital administration had to manage space in Medicine Wards for treatment of the eye-injury patients apart from admitting the persons in the 70-bedded ophthalmology ward.
Of these 190 persons with eye-injuries, at least 25 have their both eyes “damaged” by pellets while as in case of other 10 victims the pellets have completely ruptured one of their eyes.
Lethality of ‘non-lethal’ weapon!
A senior doctor told Kashmir Leader that of these 190 persons admitted at the hospital with eye-injuries, at least 25 have their both eyes “badly damaged” by pellets while as in case of other 10 persons the pellets have completely ruptured one of their eyes. “The worry is that the injury caused by the pellets to the retina in case of the 20 persons is very deep. There are some patients who have been hit by pellets from one side of eye and the exit wound is from the other side,” said the doctor adding the nature of injuries in the eye-injury cases vary from vitreous hemorrhage, retinal detachment to tear of cornea and retina.
Though the Ophthalmology Department at the SMHS hospital has already started the vitrectomies – the surgical procedure of removing the vitreous humour from the eyeball – the doctors fear that the injury in many persons may be irreparable. The bilateral (injury in both eyes) cases is not the only worry. Besides the 20 persons with severely damaged both eyes, the hospital admitted 10 persons whose one eye has been completely damaged due to rupture in the globe that was caused by the pellets. “In such cases we had to remove the all the components from the eye which had got totally damaged.
The pellets are tiny ball bearing which comes in grades of 5 to 12 with the 5 being the fastest and most damaging. A police official said the preferred pellet grade in Kashmir was 6 and 8 as he explained that one cartridge contains 400- 500 pellets. The pellet guns were used by police and CRPF for the first time in 2010 as a means to quell protests.
These 10 persons have only eye socket and there is nothing left inside it,” said the doctor. A senior surgeon at the hospital said while they have operated upon around 150 persons for “preliminary treatment” of their eye (s) injured by the pellets, “almost all of them” would need retinal surgery. The pellets are tiny ball bearing which comes in grades of 5 to 12 with the 5 being the fastest and most damaging. A police official said the preferred pellet grade in Kashmir was 6 and 8 as he explained that one cartridge contains 400-500 pellets. The pellet guns were used by police and CRPF for the first time in 2010 as a means to quell protests.
Apart from huge number of the injuries the use of pellet guns, described as “non-lethal” by the Government, has resulted in killing of three persons in the ongoing protests. In the Ward No 7, doctors feared that Umer, 5th class student from Pulwama who was operated upon on for removal of pellets from his abdomen and intestines, would lose vision in both eyes. Umer’s father Nazir Ahmad is a laborer. “My son was on the roadside with his friends when he was hit by pellets fired by policemen on a group of protestors,” he said. “He (Umer) has “severe retinal detachment” in right eye with injury to optic nerve as well,” explained a doctor in the Ward.
‘War-like situation’
A senior doctor wishing not to be named said they have never received so many eye-injury cases in such a short span of time. “It wasn’t the situation even during the three months in 2010. It is the worst that I have ever seen,” he said. The doctor said besides the cases that were received by SMHS there were around 30 pellet injury cases admitted to JVC hospital Bemina and the SKIMS Institute had also admitted eye injury cases. “More than 75 percent of the total patients would require retinal intervention. Once a pellet pierces an eye it damages its different components resulting in loss of vision over the period of time,” he said. The 3-member team of eye specialists from AIIMS that was rushed to Srinagar for assisting doctors at SMHS in treating patients with eye injuries said the situation was “intense and bad”. “We haven’t seen such a number of eye injuries in recent years. In war like situation you will get lot of such injuries,” Prof Sudarshan K Kumar who was heading the three member AIIMS team expressed his views after examining patients.
The team was sent by Union Health Ministry on the request of chief minister Mehbooba Mufti whose government is facing severe criticism for use of “excessive force” by security personnel which has left 50 civilians including teenager dead, and over 4000 injured in the past six days. “At least 70 to 80 percent of these patients will regain ‘some vision’ but they won’t have a normal vision…. The pellets have done damage to their eyes,” said Prof Sudarshan K Kumar as he supported the demand for banning the use of pellet guns.
The news that his son Muhammad Arif, a 12th standard student may not be able to see with his right eye, damaged by the pellets, left Hussain Muhammad shattered in the ward No 8 this morning. Arif and the others recuperating from the injuries represents a population of Valley’s youthful who have been left blind in one or both eyes owing to the pellet injuries. Human rights activist Mannan Bukhari who has documented the pellet injuries in his 283-page book, ‘Kashmir – Scars of Pellet Gun’ since 2010, said at least 13 people have been killed and more than 1500 seriously injured due to the use of pellets by the forces on the protestors since 2010.
Banning the pellets?
When Peoples Democratic Party, which is running the government with the BJP, was in opposition, Mehbooba Mufti led Peoples Democratic Party had repeatedly attacked Omar Abdullah over the use of pellet guns, seeking ban on the “lethal” weapon. But after taking over the reins of the state, Mehbooba, as Chief Minister, has continued with the policy of using pellet guns. In the wake of the growing criticism and demand for the ban on the pellet guns, however, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh told the parliament on July 20 that he would set up a panel to recommend other “non-lethal” option for crowd control.
On the other hand, under fire, the Chief Minister, in a damage control exercise, too has called for an end to the use of the weapon. “I am pained by the grievous eye injuries caused to some youth because of the pellets guns,” Mehbooba told the All Party Meeting that was called by the State Government on July 21 to find a way for restoring normalcy in the Valley. “This cruel method of crowd control will have to be done away with, sooner the better and alternatives shall have to be found to existing crowd control methods to ensure that youth don’t get killed or maimed in such situations.”
The police and CRPF have opposed any move to ban use of pellet guns saying the weapon was “far less harmful” compared to bullets. A senior CRPF official said the use of pellet guns “saves lives”. “It is unfortunate that there have been eye injuries but the pellets are less lethal than getting hit by bullets,” the official said. “A viable solution has to be arrived at before banning the pellet guns. If the government bans the weapon without providing any alternative option, the security forces would be forced to use bullets,” he said. A senior police official of the rank of Deputy Inspector General acknowledged the pellet injuries have “devastated” many lives. “But what is the option with us,” the official said as he put the onus on the government to take call on the demand for banning use of pellet guns.
The 3-member team of eye specialists from AIIMS that was rushed to Srinagar for assisting doctors at SMHS in treating patients with eye injuries said the situation was “intense and bad”.“We haven’t seen such a large number of eye injuries in recent years. In war like situation you will get lot of such injuries,” said Prof Sudarshan K Kumar who was heading the AIIMS team.
