'Maisuma Mandela', 'Dharma' -- stone-pelters acquire nicknames

'Maisuma Mandela', 'Bad Dog' and 'Dharma' -- these are not names of Bollywood flicks but those of 'stone pelters' in the Kashmir valley who have got these nicknames after targeting security forces during protests.

'Maisuma Mandela', a youth from a locality in the city called Maisuma which has witnessed frequent protests, is at present in hospital after he received bullet injuries in clashes last week.

People in the area have not been able to give his real name while police here have dozens of FIRs registered against him under his nickname.

Says a senior police official that he used to befriend security personnel during the day-time as a peacemaker and later target them during protests.

His modus operandi had been to know the plan of the forces in case of protests so that he could target the personnel easily during the stone-pelting.

A youth in Nowhatta nicknamed as "Wotulbuz" (jumping jack) has gained notoriety in the area for hampering moves to restore peace. He has been videographed throwing stones whenever there was a move to bring about peace.

Another youth, a six-footer from Mirjanpur in Idgah area of the city, goes by the name 'Dharma' -- derived from Amitabh Bachchan's movie Adalat.

"So many cases have been registered against them. We, in fact, have lost track of their actual identity," a senior police official said here.

An interesting case is of 'Uncle Chips', a middle-aged seller of potato chips and soft drinks who targets the policemen during demonstrations and then sells his chips and cold drinks to the tired protesters.

Their nicknames appear in the police files so regularly that their original names have not been recorded, the official said.

"Stone-throwing has become a lucrative business for these people and there is no stringent law to take on them," he said adding they easily get bail.

'Wardat', a 15-year-old boy in Khanyar locality in downtown Srinagar, has become a headache for security forces.

"Every time we pick him up, a court frees him because of his age," the official said, adding videos have been recorded to prove the case against him.

'Bad Dog', 'Arshad Googly' and 'Hartal' are some other nicknames which figure prominently in the police files here.