Kashmir Wire
SRINAGAR The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) today issued notice to the civil and police administration, Shopian, seeking their report regarding the killing of a woman by government forces “intentionally” when her suckling child was in her lap in her house in south Kashmir on December 19.
Issuing the notice, member SHRC Dilshada Shaheen asked the Deputy Commissioner and Senior Superintendent of Police to submit the report by or before February 14, the next date of hearing a petition filed by the Centre for Peace and Protection of Human Rights through its Chairman M M Shuja.
The petitioner has sought an independent probe “preferably through SHRC’s own investigation agency” to bring to justice those responsible for the killing of “unarmed woman” – Rubeena Jan alias Beauty Jan, wife of Manzoor Ahmad Mir of Batmuran Shopian.
“A constitutional obligation is cast upon this commission to constitute a thorough probe preferably through its own agency so that those responsible for the killing of the innocent civilian are brought to justice”, the petitioner in his petition said.
The petitioner said the magistrate under whose orders the firing was ordered also need to be booked under law and ordered to be probed for the “cold blooded “murder of the deceased”.
“The family of the deceased is also required to be compensated adequately keeping in view the tender age of the left behind baby who also deserves rehabilitation”, the petitioner said adding “Prima face, it was apparent that the woman was sitting in house with her suckling baby in her lap when she was hit by a bullet pumped by law enforcing agencies who were engaged in controlling a protesting mob in the area during a gunfight”.
“There is neither any allegation nor any suggestions that the deceased lady was part of protesting mob but admittedly she was in her own house with her baby in the lap”, the petitioner said,” suggests that the forces were indiscriminately pumping and spraying bullets unmindful of its consequences”.
He said the forces were expected to follow the standard operation procedures (SOP) prescribed by law and the rules “which they have not followed at all”.
“The official forces appear to have pumped bullets with an intention to kill the people including the deceased and not deter the people from protests”, the petitioner said.
He said that an unarmed civilian woman sitting in her own home with her small baby in her lap when the official bullet hit her resulting in her death. “The intentional killing of the lady decreased by official forces is a gross abuse of human rights taking away the love and affection of mother from the suckling baby and marital joy from her husband which would be a lifelong pain for the entire family especially for the baby and his father”, the petitioner said.
