|
|
|
|
|
2010 machil fake encounter case verdict Srinagar, November 13 He “welcomed” the life term awarded by the General Court Martial to seven Armymen, including two officers, in the Machil fake encounter case. “Things should not stop here. We want justice in all other cases, particularly Pathribal and the recent killing of two youngsters in Nowgam,” Omar told The Tribune on Thursday. In south Kashmir’s Pathribal, five villagers were killed and labelled as “terrorists” involved in the March 2000 massacre of 35 Sikhs at Chitisinghpora village. The case was investigated and proven by the Central Bureau of Investigation, but at the trial stage, the Army brought in the provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) to say it would not allow the trial of its men. The Tribune was the first to break the verdict in the Machil fake encounter story in its today’s edition. Omar said: “I welcome the Army’s verdict of awarding life term to the guilty Army personnel, including the Commanding Officer. This is a big thing. It will infuse confidence in people that the guilty don’t go unpunished.” The verdict comes four years after the incident in which three civilians were taken to the Line of Control (LoC) and shot dead. They were later labelled as Pakistan “terrorists” trying to infiltrate. But the truth came to light after the police exhumed the bodies and got their pictures published in local newspapers.The Army personnel had staged the fake encounter to gain monetary benefits — ~1.50 lakh for each militant — and commendation. The summer unrest of 2010 was centred around the Machil fake encounter and later snowballed into a major crisis after the killing of Tufail Mattoo in teargas shelling in Srinagar. Hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani later gave the “Quit Kashmir” call. Omar, who had described the Army as “judge, jury and executioner” after protests and killings in 2010, today credited former Home Minister P Chidambaram and former Northern Command chief KT Parnaik for pushing forward the inquiry. ‘Justice must be served’ *
‘We should not lose sight of other cases, particularly Pathribal and recent killing of two youngsters in Nowgam. Justice must be served’ *
‘The verdict should have a positive impact and people will get a chance to feel that justice is being done’ *
‘Separatists should understand their protests and general strike calls are not the way to seek justice. There are other means of doing so’.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
