J&K boys want to bid adieu to stones

Born Sajad Ahmad Bhat alias Saju at Mirjan Pora in sensitive old city, he was rechristened Varidaat (meaning mishap) by locals.

Like most 14-year-olds, Varidaat loves to chomp on Chinese momos. But what makes him different from the rest is that in the last one year, Varidaat has attained the title of a wanted stone-pelter.    

Varidaat is an orphan and is the youngest of the seven siblings. His older brother works as a coolie in Nepal. Four of his sisters are married and the fifth one has attained marriageable age. Varidaat is a school dropout.

However, this master stone pelter could not handle police pressure and decided to give in.

“He informed one of our cops that he would surrender but will not come to the police station. He told the policeman to arrest him from a momo shop,” superintendent of police (Srinagar city north) Shoket Hussain said.

“While frisking him [Varidaat], we were surprised to find a cigarette packet in his pocket. He had no money… His friend had promised to pay for the momos,” Hussain added.

But Varidaat is not the only case. Another stone pelter Mohammad Imran Khan alias Bad Dog from Nowhatta has been on police radar for quite sometime.

Like Varidaat, this 22-year-old has been into stone pelting for a year. He has four unmarried sisters and ailing parents. After a reshuffle in the police and new dispensation at the helm, Bad Dog found no choice but to surrender.

“A school dropout, Bad Dog works in a nursing home in Civil Lines area. He was wanted in several stone pelting cases and surrendered at the police station,” Hussain said.  “There is interesting story about how he was rechristened Bad Dog. He was called so because he wore a T-Shirt which had Bad Dog on it,” he said.

“Most stone pelters are school dropouts and from neglected families. Varidaat and Bad Dog are just two examples. We do not want to ruin their lives and so, we plan to rehabilitate them to help them lead a normal life,” Hussain said, adding, “We have even started calling Bad Dog, Good Boy.”

But there are other stone pelters who want to give up their violent ways and lead a normal life. Imran Zargar alias Chotta Kalia was arrested in a stone pelting case. After completing his jail term Imran pledged to reform. “I will now concentrate on weaving,” he said.