SRINAGAR: The family members of Aijaz Ahmad Ganai, a slain youth from Putrigam Pulwama on Thursday requested Jammu and Kashmir government to hand over his body for its burial in their ancestral graveyard.
“That the applicants are the maternal uncle and grandfather of the deceased and through the medium of this application wants to draw your kind attention, that the deceased was doing the graduation in Degree College Pulwama in arts subjects and in this regard has told the family members that he has some work at Pulwama on 29-12-2020,” the letter reads.
“That on 3 pm on the same date, the said deceased has called his sister namely Asiya Jan on the phone that his work is incomplete and afterwords on 30-12-2020 at 9:00 SHO Rajpora has called the father of the deceased Mohd Maqbool Ganie and enquired about the deceased, in turn, the father of the deceased called back the SHO concerned and send the photograph of his son through WhatsApp. The SHO Rajpora in reply told the father of the deceased that he has to approach the PCR Batamallo Srinagar for further details of his son,” it further adds.
“That the said Mohd Maqbool Ganie along with the locals of the village went to the PCR, and where the father of the found the dead body of his son and told the PCR to hand over the body of the son, but the authority did not return the dead body of the deceased to his father,”the letter read, adding that the father of the deceased was astonished when the PCR authorities declined to hand over the body of the deceased to the father of the deceased and it was the surprise for the father of the deceased when the PCR authorities told him that his son was a militant.
“That it is worthwhile to mention here that the said deceased was a student by profession and has no criminal background and there is no FIR against the said deceased in any agency including the police station Rajpora,” letter further reads, while adding that the said deceased was not remotely connected with any anti-national activities and the question of joining militancy does not arise at all.
“That the killing of the said deceased is very brutal and calculated one which is against the law of the Iand and also hits the democracy and Indian constitution,” the letter reads.
“The killing of the said person is a gross violation of human rights, no doubt that station in the Kashmir is disturbed one, but that does not give the right to the security agency to kill an innocent in such a ruthless manner. It is therefore humbly prayed and requested, that the dead body of the said person be handed over to his family members as soon as possible for conducting the last rites of the deceased and a team of the impartial officer be constituted for conducting the enquiry in the said matter in the interests of justice,” the letter reads.
Meanwhile, Peoples Democratic Party Mehbooba Mufti, who visited the families, tweeted: “Forget justice, even their bodies are not being returned to them for the last rites. They have lost their beloved sons forever and in the midst of grief have to plead even for closure.”
Met families of the young men killed in Lawaypora encounter. Forget justice, even their dead bodies are not being returned to them for the last rites. They have lost their beloved sons forever & in the midst of grief have to plead even for closure.@manojsinha_ @adgpi pic.twitter.com/2esKTzpjHy
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) December 31, 2020
Meanwhile, a spontaneous shutdown was observed in the twin districts of Shopian and Pulwama in south Kashmir. Authorities snapped mobile Internet services, “as a precautionary measure”.
