Srinagar, February 10
The BSF has identified a jawan as ‘possibly involved’ in the unprovoked firing that resulted in the killing of teenager Zahid Farooq Sheikh of the Nishat area on the outskirts of Srinagar on Friday last. The killing led to protests and a complete shutdown across the valley while normal life was restored after eight days yesterday.
The BSF has suspended jawan Lakhvinder of 68 Bn and handed him over to the police, which is investigating the incident.
“An internal inquiry into the allegations of firing that led to the death of Zahid Farooq has revealed prima facie the possibility of Lakhvinder being involved in the incident,” said PPS Sidhu, Special Director General of the BSF, at a press conference here today. He said the internal inquiry on the basis of some ‘crucial information’ yesterday led to the possible involvement of the jawan in the killing of the youth.
“All things are the subject of investigation,” Sidhu said in reply to various queries related to the case. Eyewitnesses had told the police that those who fired on Zahid were travelling in a vehicle with the insignia of a hangul (red deer), which is found on BSF vehicles. “We will share details with the police,” he said and added that some others travelling in the vehicle at the time of the incident were also being questioned.
Others travelling in the BSF Gypsy vehicle did not know about the incident, he maintained. “We zeroed in on one of them yesterday,” he added. Sidhu said there was no information about the possibility of the involvement of the jawan till yesterday when “we got some crucial information”.
The police is investigating the case, while the Chief Minister has ordered an inquiry headed by the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Naseem Lankar.
JAMMU: In a press conference convened hurriedly here on Wednesday afternoon, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said a BSF jawan had been arrested for killing Zahid Farooq. “The jawan has been suspended after a swift investigation into the incident. He is in police custody now,” he added.
He did not agree to the argument that incident had any bearing on the demand to revoke the Special Powers to Armed Forces Act. Urging people to shun protests and live a normal life, the Chief Minister said, “We are making an effective strategy to prevent recurrence of such cases.”
