SHOPIAN RAPE & MURDER CASE
HC directs interrogation of suspended policemen
Syed Basharat
SRINAGAR, July 3: In a major development today, the High Court directed the state government to interrogate suspended police officers and two witnesses and if necessary go for their narco-analysis and submit a weekly progress report in Shopian rape and murder incident before the court. The court also proposed the government to shift IGP CID Farooq Ahmad from departmental inquiry with regard to this incident, and assign him supervision of investigations.
On June 22, on the recommendations of Judicial Commission of Inquiry (JCI) the government had suspended Superintendent of Police Shopian Javed Iqbal, his deputy Rohit Baskot, concerned SHO Shakeel Ahmad and Sub-Inspector Gazi Abdul Kareem. On June 18, the chief judicial magistrate Shopian had recorded the statements of the two witnesses Ghulam Mohi-u-Din Dar running a shop at Batpora Shopian and Abdul Rashid.
Although the written order from the court will, come on July 4, a division bench of the state High Court comprising Chief Justice Barin Ghosh and Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir had proposed to make Union of India as a party to the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Bar Association. But a Bar member, advocate Bashir Ahmad prayed that the IGP CRPF in person be made a party to the litigation. He also pleaded that the conversation transpired between the police officials on the day of incident in Shopian be sought form BSNL.
The court agreed and made IGP CRPF and CBI forensic Laboratory as a party to the Litigation, directing Anil Bhan the CBI counsel and Assistant Solicitor General of India to ensure the cooperation of IGP CRPF and to request the CBI forensic laboratory to expedite DNA testing, for immediate reports.
The division bench also directed a weekly hearing in the case, and sought a weekly progress report from the Special Investigation Team (SIT). The Chief Justice further directed the government to handover the departmental inquiry to any other officer and appoint IGP CID Farooq Ahmad as the head of SIT. It was further directed that DIG Armed Rouf-ul-Hassan will assist IGP in the investigations.
However, the Advocate General Ishaq Qadri objected to this proposal saying that IGP Farooq Ahmad had some domestic compulsions and was not in a position to perform the new assignment. Qadri also submitted the names of four other IGPs Amin Anjum, Amin Shah, Sheikh Owais and S M Sahai but the Bar showed its dissatisfaction with state's panel of senior police officers. The Bar also showed its satisfaction with the appointment of IGP Farooq Ahmad as the SIT head saying that it does not dispute the integrity of other officers but given the past record of investigations, Farooq will suit the case.
"We want a police officer who will put his life into the investigations," the Chief Justice observed. The court directed the state government to prepare a list of civilians and persons in uniform who live 1000 meters around the spot from where the bodies of the two women were recovered for DNA testing.
"The state government, with the assistance of locals in Shopian and Bar Association should locate the person or persons who remember the face of Gujjars who were reportedly present around the spot where the bodies were recovered on the day of incident," the division bench observed.
The court proposed the government to prepare the sketches of the nomads who according to the Bar counsel Mian Abdul Qayoom were present on the spot. The court will pass its order tomorrow. On July 1, the court had directed the state government to present the case diaries of the incident before the court.
Complying with the court directions, the state government today presented the case diaries in presence of SP Shahdin Malik who is currently heading the SIT. In the morning just after the hearing commenced, the Chief Justice called Shahdin to his chamber directing him to explain the contests of the case diaries.
During the second sitting, the court expressed its dissatisfaction with the investigations so far conducted in the incident.