Police filed a murder case Wednesday against a paramilitary soldier accused of firing live ammunition on angry Muslim protesters in Kashmir, as the death toll from days of unrest rose to four, The Associated Press reported. On Wednesday, hundreds of protesters marched through Baramulla, which lies 35 miles (55 kilometers) north of Srinagar. Shops and businesses were shuttered for a second day across the Kashmir Valley in response to a strike call by separatist groups. Violent protests have rocked the town of Baramulla since Monday after a local girl eloped and one of her fiance's male relatives was allegedly held by police in a bid to get the couple to return to their conservative Muslim community. Locals, who also accused police of molesting the wife of the relative, then directed their anger over the incident toward Indian security forces. So far this week, four people have died and dozens injured as government troops have fired tear gas and live ammunition to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing protesters. A 14-year-old boy died in a Srinagar hospital Wednesday, a day after he was shot by the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force, a police statement said. The shooting killed another protester on Tuesday, following two others who died on Monday. On Wednesday, the state police asked the Central Reserve Police to hand over the soldier for prosecution for firing that killed two protesters. The soldier has not been formally charged yet.
