Army rejects reports of soldier ramming car into crowd in Nagpur

A day after multiple media reports claimed that a drunk army personnel rammed his car into a crowd, injuring 30 people in Nagpur, Maharashtra, the army on Tuesday issued a rebuttal calling the reports “false and misleading.”

The Army conducted an investigation along with the local police authorities. In a statement, the army spokesperson stated that the incident involving Havildar Harsh Pal Mahadev Waghmare, a resident of Ramtek, Nagpur, deployed in the North East, occurred in the evening of August 3.

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“The Non-Commissioned Officer had a minor altercation with certain locals over parking, while returning from a relative’s place. During this altercation, the Army personnel was chased by four individuals and in his attempt to move away from the miscreants, his car struck a tree. At this moment, the Non-Commissioned Officer was pulled out from the car, savagely attacked by these four individuals, his car was damaged and thrown in a drain,” the statement read.

It was also stated that a day after the incident the Havildar filed an FIR against the four individuals at P.S. Ramtek, Nagpur. The Local Military Authority has linked up with local police authorities for speedy resolution of the matter. All assistance is being provided to Havildar Harsh Pal Mahadev Waghmare.

Lambasting the media outlets for sensationalising the issue, the army spokesperson said that the case is a stark reminder of the danger posed by sensationalism in reporting of incidents.

“This incident may also be a deliberate attempt to tarnish the reputation of the Indian Army and create divisions where none exists. Indian Army has always upheld the truth and earnestly requests all our friends in the media to verify and establish facts before reporting of incidents,” the spokesperson added.