Srinagar, March 13: The Indian Army on Wednesday said that a youth killed by militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district was not a soldier but a deserter.
Defence Ministry spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said here that recruit Showkat Ahmed Naik never took oath as a soldier.
“He was enrolled on January 15, 2018 in the Territorial Army. He went to the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) Regiment Centre on March 21, 2018. The individual went on three days’ leave on September 14, 2018 and never returned.
“He was declared a deserter on September 17,” the spokesman said.
Earlier, police sources said that Ashiq Hussain, a 25-year-old soldier from JAKLI, was killed in Pinglena village of Pulwama district by militants.
