The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Sunday filed a murder case against unidentified persons for the deaths of three civilians after they were picked up by the Army for questioning, reported The Hindu.

The three civilians were found dead on December 22, a day after four soldiers were killed in a suspected militant attack in the Poonch district.

On Sunday, the Army identified the four soldiers as Naik Birender Singh, Naik Karan Kumar, Rifleman Gautam Kumar and Rifleman Chandan Kumar.

The civilians who were found dead have been identified as Safeer Hussain (43), Mohammad Showket (27) and Shabir Ahmad (32). They were part of a group of eight persons picked up for questioning about the Poonch attack.

A first information report in connection with the deaths of three civilians and injuries to five others was filed at the Surankote police station in Poonch under Sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code, reported The Indian Express.

The case was registered after a 29-second video, purportedly showing soldiers stripping the three men and sprinkling red chilly powder on them, was shared on social media.

The Jammu and Kashmir government had acknowledged the deaths in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, but did not provide an explanation for how they occurred.

“The medico-legal formalities were conducted and legal action in this matter has been initiated by the appropriate authority,” the information and public relations department of the Union territory said. “Government has announced compensation for each of the deceased. Further Government has also announced compassionate appointments to the next of kin of each deceased.”

The Army also ordered a Court of Inquiry to investigate the circumstances that led to the death of three civilians, reported The Indian Express.

The inquiry will be conducted by a separate military formation based in Akhnoor and will include other agencies, such as the Jammu and Kashmir Police in order to ensure impartiality.

Unidentified officials also told the newspaper that two senior officers may be moved from their current appointments while an inquiry will be conducted to ascertain if they were any lapses on their part.