Canadian envoy's vehicle was not target: Kashmir official

The Canadian envoy's vehicle was not the target when stones were pelted while it was on way to a Kashmir resort, an official said.

A Jammu and Kashmir official denied that Canadian High Commissioner Stewart Beck's vehicle was the target of stone throwers Saturday while the envoy was going to north Kashmir Gulmarg ski resort.

"It was a stray stone that hit the ambassador's car while he along with his wife was going to Gulmarg on Saturday," a senior state government official told IANS.

"Some anti-social elements were trying to block the traffic on the Srinagar-Gulmarg road during a shutdown called by separatists while the envoy's vehicle passed through Kunzar area...," he said.

"Window pane of the vehicle got smashed, because of which the ambassador's wife received minor bruises," the official said.

"It would be misreporting facts if someone said it was an attack on the Canadian envoy as such," he added.

Officials of Canadian embassy in Delhi have said the vehicle in which the diplomat and his family were travelling was stoned twice Saturday at Kunzar on Srinagar-Gulmarg highway.

High Commissioner Stewart Beck, his wife Brenda Beck and their 14-year-old son were travelling in the vehicle when they were caught in stone pelting and some pieces of window panes hit Brenda and she received minor injury.

Police have, however, denied that there was any stone pelting in the area and said the stone that hit the envoy's vehicle was thrown by somebody from an orchard along the road.