RIYAZ UL KHALIQ
SRINAGAR
PDP President and leader of opposition in legislative assembly Mehbooba Mufti Tuesday demanded registration of FIRs in the Shopian killings within two days. The PDP president said that the registration of an FIR is a basic human right and the families of the slain youth of Shopian should be allowed to file them.
“We demand that FIR should be filed in the Shopian killings and the family version should be taken,” Mehbooba said, adding, “We give an ultimatum of two days to the government.”
She said that it is ironical on part of state government to take CRPF version and refusing the viewpoint of families.
While the PDP president started to address the media after sent back by police from Pulwama, she informed that on Wednesday afternoon one more youth, Rafiq Ahmad Ganaie, a Sumo driver has been killed in Shopian.
Pertinently, Mehbooba had tried to visit the families of the slain youth but was stopped and arrested by police.
She said that if government fails to file an FIR, her party would be ‘forced’ to take further steps. Mehbooba claimed that a family of a slain youth is in contact with her and said: “We are visiting police station to file the FIR, but police is refusing.”
Mehbooba also appealed Home minister of India to remove the CRPF camp from Gagran, Shopian ‘responsible’ for the recent killings. “We ask union Home minister to remove the camp from the area as is being demanded by the people,” she said, adding, “A co-education degree college is in its vicinity and it may result in further worsening the situation.”
Mehbooba said that it is like the Neelofar and Asiya case wherein no FIR was lodged by police for seven days and now police is again repeating the same. She claimed that if they would have been allowed to visit the families they would have calmed down the anger of people and helped file FIRs.
Launching an attack on CM Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba said: “Ever since Omar Abdullah became CM, our youth has become the soft target,” she said. “The maximum killings since then are of youth and are innocent.”
She said that CM is only making claims of solving the cases in hours but is not able to solve any one.
She said youth is feeling alienated in the present government and is being forced to pelt stones or take to arms.
She alleged: “NC led government of re-activating torture centers closed by her father when he was in CM’s office.” The PDP president compared CM Omar Abdullah to a trade union leader who only makes demands and is not able to do any anything on his own.
She said that there is no utility of law in present government and Omar’s father and Union Minster Farooq Abdullah acknowledged it recently when he said that enquiries initiated are useless.
Mehbooba in a scathing attack on National Conference held it responsible for the killings and said that NC is spreading its ‘goonism’ in rural areas to take benefits from it.
“Like in Srinagar people boycott elections and NC is taking its benefits, it wants to take this process to other areas of Kashmir. South is its main target.”
