Major Leetul Gogoi of the Indian Army and two others were taken to a police station after an altercation at a hotel in Srinagar on Wednesday, according to a police statement. Gogoi had been at the centre of a controversy in April 2017 when he gave orders for a civilian to be tied to the bonnet of a vehicle as a human shield during a bye-election to discourage protestors from throwing stones at security personnel.

The statement said the Khanyar police station in Srinagar received a call from Hotel Grand Mamta in Srinagar at 11 am about an altercation that had taken place.

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“Accordingly a police party was deputed to the hotel, and it surfaced that a woman (name withheld) and person namely Sameer Ahmed of Budgam had come to see some person,” the statement said. “But the hotel receptions did not allow them to meet the person. Meanwhile police party reached the spot and got all the persons to the police station.”

The statement added: “Subsequently it was learn the that the woman had come to meet an army officer. The identity and particulars of the army officer has been collected by the police as well. The officials were handed over to their unit after due recording their statements. The statement of woman is also being recorded for probing the matter.”

North Srinagar’s Superintendent of Police Sajad Ahmad Shah declined to name the officer the two had come to meet, but the hotel told the Hindustan Times that the room the man and the woman wanted to go to was booked online for Leetul Gogoi. “What we know is that a man and a woman had come to meet him,” Shah was quoted as saying. “The hotel staff did not allow them, leading to an altercation.”

Inspector General of Police (Kashmir Range) Swayam Prakash Pani has ordered an investigation and asked for a report to be submitted at the earliest, the police added.