- Mehbooba Mufti attacked the Centre for its claims of peace and normalcy in the region stating that “Rajouri-Poonch is an area which has never supported violence or militancy.”
- J&K govt announces compensation of Rs 50 lakh each, jobs to kin of 3 civilians found dead in Poonch
The ripples of the death of three civilians, who had allegedly been picked up for questioning in connection with the terror attack that left four Army soldiers dead in Poonch, were felt in the Valley as both the Peoples Democratic Party and National Conference spoke out against the incident.
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti alleged the Army had picked up locals for questioning and “the tortured bodies of three of those people” had been found near the encounter site. She further alleged that 12 others from Topa Pir village in Bafliaz were admitted to a hospital at Surankote after being tortured.
On Thursday afternoon, four Armymen lost their lives in a militant ambush, following which search operations were initiated by security agencies and locals were questioned. As news of the death of three civilians spread, internet services were snapped in Poonch and Rajouri.
On the deaths of the three civilians, the J&K administration said “medico-legal formalities were conducted and legal action in this matter has been initiated by the appropriate authority”. “Government has announced compensation for each of the deceased. Further, the government has announced compassionate appointments to the next of kin of each deceased,” the administration said.
Mufti attacked the Centre for its claims of peace and normalcy in J&K, stating that “Rajouri-Poonch is an area which has never supported violence or militancy (but) over the last two or three years, we are witnessing militancy in these areas as well”.
The National Conference, led by party general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar, held a protest in Srinagar. “I would like to request the government, on behalf of the people of J&K, that a probe should be set up to investigate why these civilians have been killed. This is the only way to keep the peace and sustain it. Otherwise the situation will get worse,” he said.
The J&K Apni Party also held protests in Srinagar, seeking a probe into the deaths.
Mufti also hit out at the BJP, stating that “despite turning J&K into an open prison, despite arrests of hundreds of youth, dismissing and pressuring employees, journalists, religious leaders, and despite making the lives of people of J&K, especially Kashmir, miserable, high ranking officials have been killed in Rajouri-Poonch” over the last couple of years.
“Had this happened under any other government, the godi media would have raised questions. They picked up 15 people from their homes who were tortured. Three of them have already been killed. So, how is this ‘Khushal Kashmir’ or ‘Naya Kashmir’ where neither Armymen nor common people are safe?” she said.
The “main reason” for such incidents taking place is that “the forces think that they can get away with fake encounters”, she said, adding: “Like it happened in Amshipora (Shopian) fake encounter, where an Army court awarded punishment, but a civilian court overturned that decision. I think that message has gone to the forces that they can get away with whatever they do.”
Urging Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to award compensation of Rs 50 lakh each to the families of the civilians, Mufti said, “We condemn the attack on the Army. Who will not condemn such killings? They also have families and come here for their livelihood. But who will condemn the killings of three civilians and the thrashing of those in hospitals?”
The Hurriyat Conference, led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, “expressed deep regret and sorrow at the killing of three civilians”. “This incident should be thoroughly investigated by the agencies concerned and the perpetrators brought to book,” the Hurriyat said in a statement.
People’s Conference chairman Sajad Lone posted on social media: “The loss of civilian life in Poonch is a grim reminder of the challenges that we still face… Maybe time has come to have an institutional mechanism to ensure transparency in such cases and punishment as per the law of the land. Zero tolerance to terror has to be followed up with zero tolerance towards rogue terror.” Source
