Kashmiri shopkeeper Aqib Farooq Mir got a jolt today when he found that he was labelled as a newly-recruited militant and his picture was being circulated on social media.
The police, who were alerted immediately after the circulation of the picture, traced Mir, a resident of Beehama in Ganderbal district of central Kashmir, to his shop on the outskirts of the city.
Mir, unaware that his picture was doing the rounds of various social media platforms including WhatsApp and Facebook, was stunned to find that policemen were enquiring about him from others as well as his family members.
Soon, police checked his previous records and found him clean. A case was registered under various sections to identify the mischief-mongers and in a quick action, police arrested one person, Manzoor Ahmad Ganie, who circulated Mir's photograph on a WhatsApp group.
The picture was circulated on social media platforms with an intent to cause fear and alarm to the public, describing him as a new militant recruit.
"On verification, it turned out to be a mischief," a police spokesman said.
The spokesman said on verification it was found that Mir is a respectable citizen and is running a shop in Beehama area of Ganderbal. His family was in stress after the fake news of his joining a militant group appeared on social media.
"Strict action will be taken against the mischief- and rumour-mongers who are trying to disrupt the peaceful atmosphere in the valley," the spokesman said.
His family members had received multiple calls from relatives regarding the incident, which made his parents worried.
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