NEW DELHI, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- India has announced amnesty to first-time stone pelters in Indian-controlled Kashmir in a bid to give them a chance to rebuild their lives.
More than 4,500 youths have been arrested for stone-pelting on Indian security forces, mostly during the five-month unrest in Indian-controlled Kashmir that began after the killing of Pakistan-based terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen's poster boy Burhan Wani last year.
In a series of tweets Wednesday night, Indian-controlled Kashmir's Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said, "It gives me immense satisfaction to restart the process of withdrawing FIRs against first-time offenders of stone pelting."
FIR is first information report filed by police against anyone committing a crime.
The chief minister said the move "is a ray of hope for these young boys and their families. This initiative will provide them an opportunity to rebuild their lives."
Mufti announced the amnesty days after the central government advised her government to let off the first-time offenders in law and order situations in Indian-controlled Kashmir to give them a chance to rebuild their career rather than being labeled criminals lifelong.
