300 WhatsApp groups were inciting stone pelters : Police

Nearly 300 WhatsApp groups, of which 90 per cent have been shut down, were being used to mobilise stone-throwers in Kashmir to disrupt security forces’ operations at encounter sites, a police officer said today.
The 300 WhatsApp groups had around 250 members each, the police officer said, explaining howattempts were being made to disrupt the operations of the forces by mobilising stone-throwing mobs at the encounter sites.
“We identified the groups and the group administrators, who were called in by the police for counselling. We have had a good response to this initiative,” the police officer said.
In the last three weeks, more than 90 per cent of these WhatsApp groups have been shut down, he said.
He said the government’s policy of suspending Internet appeared to be showing positive results in curbing stone-throwing during encounters and cited the case of Saturday’s encounter in Budgam. Just a few youth gathered to hurl stones after two militants were gunned down in the encounter on Saturday.
This was in sharp contrast to the encounter in Durbugh village in the same area on March 28, when a large number of stone-throwers had assembled and three of them were killed in firing by security forces.