Families accuse TA trooper for their disappearance
Court asks police to arrest accused army man in 24 hours
Amid apprehensions of repeat of Machil-like fake encounter, families of two of the three persons of border district of Kupwara, who have gone missing since November 17, have accused Territory Army (TA) trooper of being involved in their disappearance and approached a local court here to seek his arrest.
The court has directed police to arrest the accused TA trooper within 24 hours.Three persons identified as Gulam Jeelani Khatana 42, of Sarjanandi Dardpora; Mir Hussain Khatana, 45, of Ghahdhar Mohala Satboyain and Ali Mohammad Sheikh, 35, of Trehgam Kupwara have gone missing since November 17, four days after army launched a massive operation in Manigah forests in Kupwara.
On November 17, army claimed to have killed two militants in the Manigah forests during the operation.
According to their family members, Jeelani, a father of 10 including a blind son and daughter and Hussain, a father of six including three daughters, have gone missing after a TA trooper identified as Manzoor Khawaja of 160 bn based at Hirri Kupwara took them along on November 17 from their houses.
Ali Mohammad Sheikh 35, a father of 3 and resident of Trehgam area, as per his wife Haseena, is also missing from November 17. Six days after his missing, he was acquitted in a case by a court on November 23.
Since the families could not establish any contact with the missing trio, they apprehended that they may have been killed in 2010 Machil-like fake encounter.
On the complaint of families of Jeelani and Khatana, Police Station Kralapora lodged an FIR No 100 of 2015 under Section 364 of Ranbir Panel Code (RPC) against the accused TA personal and launched investigations.
Ali Mohammad Sheikh’s family also registered missing report in Police Station Trehgam on November 29 November.
The families of Jeelani and Khatana also approached the court of CJM Kupwara and sought arrest of accused TA trooper. Police produced the case diary before the court.
The court directed police to arrest the accused TA trooper within 24 hours and produce him in the court.
Advocate Bilal Ahmad Malik, former Kupwara Bar Association President, is pleading the case on behalf of the families of the missing persons.
Jeelani’s wife Jan Begum and Hussain’s wife Saleema told that their husbands went missing on November 17 after the accused army man took them along in an army jeep and subjected them to disappearance.
They expressed apprehensions that the missing persons could have been killed in a 2010 like Machil fake encounter.
The relatives said that there was no doubt the duo had been taken by a Territorial Army trooper of 160 Battalion, based at Hayain Kupwara and even identified the accused trooper as Manzoor Ahmad.
“There is no doubt that Manzoor kidnapped Jeelani and Hussain,” said Jeelani’s nephew Khursheed Ahmad.
He said he twice visited Hirri army camp to meet the accused Manzoor, whose phone continues to remain switched off since November 17.
“I met the camp officer and apprised him of the entire episode and our worries”, Khursheed said added the officer avoided him by saying the accused trooper was not reachable.
SSP Kupwara Aijaz Ahmad Bhat confirmed the reports that three persons of the district have gone missing.
He said on the basis of complaints, they have registered a case against an accused trooper.
“The investigation has been set in the motion to trace out the missing youth,” added SSP.
