Amnesty calls for ban on pellet shotguns
AFP
SRINAGAR: Amnesty International on Wednesday reiterated its call for a ban on pellet-firing shotguns used by Indian forces in Kashmir to quell civilian protests, reports AFP.
In a report the rights group said it had interviewed 88 people whose eyesight had been damaged by the metal shot from the pump-action guns. Two of the victims had been completely blinded.
The injuries and deaths caused by this cruel weapon bear testimony to how dangerous, inaccurate and indiscriminate it is, Akar Patel, executive director at Amnesty International India, said in a statement.
There is no proper way to use pellet-firing shotguns. It is irresponsible of the authorities to continue the use of the shotguns despite being aware of the damage they do. Government forces in Indian-administered Kashmir have been using pellet guns since 2010 as a non-lethal weapon following widescale civilian protests against Indian rule.
After a spate of gruesome injuries last year that earned the title epidemic of dead eyes, Amnesty and other rights groups called for a complete ban on the use of the shotguns.
A single cartridge fired releases at least 500 high-speed metal pellets.
