The story of soldier in Kollam having been abducted, assaulted and branded with letters “PFI” on back, turned out to be hoax. Police in Kadakkal took the said soldier, Shine Kumar, and friend Joshi into custody for filing false complaint.The complaint claiming torture of the soldier had grabbed national attention in media.
Police who investigated the claim also recovered the green paint and brush used to do the ‘PFI branding’ that Shine flashed in the pictures to reinforce his claim. In custody, Shine’s friend confessed it was Shine’s desire for fame had drove him to act out. He further said, Shine had purchased the paint and brush from Chirakinkeezh and asked him to rip his shirt at the back with blade. Shine also asked to beat up.In his complaint, Army personnel Shine Kumar said he was attacked by a group of six men in a rubber forest next to his house in Kadakkal on Sunday night. They tied up his hands with tape, and wrote PFI on his back with green paint.