KL Report
SRINAGAR
Rejecting the latest government’s version on September 7, Shopian incident in which CRPF killed four youth as repulsive, Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) Saturday said it provides justification for the cold-blooded murder of four youth.
In a statement, the party president, Mehbooba Mufti said the statement of Inspector General of Police amounts to clean chit to the CRPF even before any investigation has taken place. “As in earlier atrocities of similar nature, the police have acted as judge, jury and the prosecutor; burying another tragedy under unrelated and un-established accusations against the victims,” she said.
Mehbooba said very few people in Kashmir expect justice from the present government, but police statement in the Shopian case has taken brazenness and insensitivity to an unprecedentedly low level. “It seems the police have tried to justify the killing of youth, for one of them having been arrested under PSA, and two others having some distant relatives connected with militancy,” she said. After huge public outcry FIR into the incident was lodged after 12 days and police came out with its version of facts within a day only thus eliminating any possibility of further investigation. Though, over few days, the National Conference leaders have been making demands that the centre government should take action against the CRPF, but it is their government which gave the CRPF ‘clean chit’.
As per the statement Mehbooba has also said by the latest argument justifying killing by CRPF would make most Kashmiris fit for facing the firing squad as hundreds of youth have, in-fact, been subjected to. She said, “On the one hand the police very recently claimed that they had contacted Bihar police to establish the antecedents of the unidentified fourth victim but without taking people into confidence on the progress of that reference, it virtually brought the rabbit out of the magic hat by giving a name to the dead body and tagging it as that of a terrorist.” She said the police story contradicts every version of the local witnesses, which have been extensively quoted in the media reports.
Mehbooba said, “The present government has by its conduct sent a clear message to the people of the state that each one of them is a suspect and vulnerable to government bullets and that no judicial remedy is available to them.” She added, “Even the judicial orders are being violated with impunity as people set free by courts are re-arrested within the jail premises itself.” She said the instance of Mushtaq-ul-Islam is glaring example of lawlessness of the government, as he has repeated been re-arrested even as courts granted him bails.
Mehbooba said Kashmir is facing a human rights crisis under the present dispensation as the wanton arrest of youth and killings by government forces and by unidentified gunmen are worsening the situation. She said the recent killings in Markundal in Bandipora and Gool in Ramban, too, have been hushed up as is now being done to the Shopian incident.
