One injured as CRPF soldier's rifle goes off

One civilian was hurt when people rushed for cover after a CRPF soldier's rifle went off accidentally in Jammu and Kashmir. Reports say people mistook the shots for a militant attack, which triggered a stampede.

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir):A civilian was reportedly injured during a stampede when the rifle of a CRPF soldier went off accidentally at Narbal area of central Kashmir's Budgam district, an official said.

"There was chaos and panic among the locals after the service rifle of one personnel from CRPF's Coy 73 Battalion went off accidentally at Narbal area. People took the accidental fire as a militant attack which led to the confusion. The situation was immediately taken into control and the personnel is being questioned," a police official involved in the investigation said on the condition of anonymity.

He further said, "There are reports of a civilian being injured during the stampede. We are still verifying the reports. "

Meanwhile, the security forces have cordoned off the area and searches have been launched.

"Searches are part of our standard operating procedure and are done to clear any doubts of the presence of any suspect in the area," the official said.