The state Cabinet today passed a resolution moved by Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed to express shock and grief over the death of trucker Zahid Bhat, who succumbed to his injuries at Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi on Sunday.
Zahid along with another trucker, Showket Ahmad Dar (35), had been severely burnt in a mob attack in Udhampur district on October 9, following protests triggered by rumours of cow slaughter in the area.
Expressing solidarity with the bereaved family, the Cabinet observed a two-minute silence in memory of the departed soul.
Zahid belonged to Botengo village in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.
The Cabinet also approved ex gratia relief of Rs 5 lakh and Rs 3 lakh and government jobs in favour of the next of kin of Zahid and Showkat Ahmad Dar, who is undergoing treatment at Safdarjung Hospital, respectively.
The Cabinet also assured people of fast-tracking investigation so that those found guilty of the heinous crime were not allowed to go unpunished under any circumstance.
Asserting that the constituency of peace would be further strengthened, the Cabinet vowed to defeat the conspiracy hatched by certain people to subvert the “Agenda of peace and reconciliation”.
Nine persons have been arrested and five of them booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) for the incident.
Those booked under the PSA include Sandoor Singh of Dheda, Gool; Danish alias Pammal of Dewak, Udhampur; Harish Singh Katoch of Bhimdassa, Gool; Balbahadur Singh alias Abbu of Moungri; and Varinder Singh alias Kaka of Nepal, presently at Shiv Nagar, Udhampur.
