From Uri to Pulwama, past probes miscarried

Srinagar, Jan 10 : Even as the occupant Jammu and Kashmir Government has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the firing on civilians allegedly by forces in Pulwama district last week, similar probes into the killings of civilians in 2012 proved to be damp squib as neither findings of the inquiries were made public nor appropriate action was taken on them.

Although the inquiry conducted into the killing of Altaf Ahmad Sood by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in Boniyar Uri on January 1, 2012, indicted the paramilitary force of resorting to “unwarranted and disproportionate” force, the accused men were not charged with murder.

“In my opinion, CISF personnel guarding the NHPC complex have violated the SOP and resorted to excessive use of force which was unwarranted and disproportionate to the action from the protesters. The situation that arose could have been avoided had the CISF personnel shown restraint. As a result of the action by the CISF personnel one innocent life was lost,” the inquiry officer has said in his report.

The CISF personnel had fired on the protesters when the latter were demanding adequate power supply in the area. Questions are being raised why the accused men were charged with lesser offence when the magisterial inquiry clearly established that firing was unwarranted.

Another inquiry ordered into the ‘killing’ of 20-year old Ashiq Hussain Rather by soldiers of 32 Rashtriya Rifles established that the youth was killed deliberately. The inquiry conducted by Sub-Divisional Magistrate Sopore was submitted to State Government last week, but no action has been taken against the accused nor has a charge-sheet been filed.

The report, according to sources, has negated the Army’s claim that the death was an accident.

In the fake encounter killing of Hilal Ahmad of Bandipora, the inquiry ordered by State Government is yet to be concluded. Six months after the inquiry was ordered into the killing that sparked off massive protests in the Valley, the inquiry officer told Greater Kashmir that it will take him 2-3 months more to conclude the probe.

While Army had initially claimed killing a militant in an encounter, it later turned out that the victim was an unarmed civilian. Despite this, shockingly, the police have given a clean chit to Army by blaming an Army source for the killing.

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