KL Report
SRINAGAR
A day after State Home Department overruled recommendation for reinstatement of three policemen and ordered their dismissal for being involved in the killing of seven innocent civilians including two brothers in Brakpora, Islamabad, 14 years back, the families of the victims Tuesday termed the decision an attempt to hoodwink and mislead people of Kashmir.
“What can we expect from State Authorities when it takes 14 years for them to dismiss the guilty? We don’t want dismissal but punishment to them,” Rashid Khan whose brother Rafiq Khan was killed at the hands of government forces at Brakpora said.
Five days after the Chattisinghpora event in March 2000, in which unidentified gunmen shot dead 34 innocent Sikhs, Indian military forces killed five men in Pathribal village of Anantnag district, claiming that the victims were the “foreign militants” responsible for the Chattisinghpora massacre. Local villagers however claimed that the men were ordinary civilians who had been killed in a fake encounter, not “foreign militants. During their protest rally, government forces fired upon them indiscriminately killing the 7 civilians, all residents of Brari Angan. Muhammad Rafiq Khan whose father Jumma Khan had become the victim in Pathribal fake encounter also lost his life during the Barakpora protest.
The son of one of the slain man Muhammad Hanief said that mere dismissing the guilty is not going to help the present government. “If Omar Abdullah really wants to win the hearts of the people, then it should punish the guilty and book all who are responsible for the killing of innocent people in Kashmir,” he said adding that it is the height of injustice that even after finding guilty, the probe committee had recommended for the reinstatement of killer cops including Assistant Sub-Inspector Ashok Kumar, Head Constable Krishen Kumar and Selection Grade Constable Chaman Lal.
The family members of the victims said that they don’t need anything except justice. ‘Our protest will continue and resentment will not stop brewing till killers are not hanged,” they said.
Pertinently, the 7 protestors who were killed at the hands of government forces at Brakpora in 2000 were identified as Muhammad Rafiq Khan son of Jumma Khan, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan son of Sidiq Khan, Akhtar Ali Khan son of Roshan Ali Khan, Akhtar Ali Khan son of Sabaz Ali Khan, Muhammad Hanif Khan son of Gafoor Khan, brothers Noorani Khan and Muhammad Amin Khan sons of Topa Khan all residents of Brari Angan Anantnag.
