Srinagar: Several parties in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday staged protests and demanded an impartial probe into the deaths of three civilians after they were allegedly picked up by the Army for questioning.
According to officials, the three men were found dead under “suspicious circumstances” on Friday near the site of an ambush by terrorists on Army vehicles in Poonch district, leaving five soldiers dead and two injured the previous day.
The deceased — — Safeer Hussain (43), Mohammad Showket (27) and Shabir Ahmad (32) — were among the eight people reportedly picked up by the Army for questioning in connection with Thursday’s attack, the officials had said.
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti, however, claimed that 15 people were picked up by the Army for questioning, of whom three died, while the remaining were seriously injured.
“After the Poonch incident, 15 people were picked up by the Army for questioning from Topa Peer village, out of which bodies of three bearing injury marks were found near the encounter site. The remaining 12 persons are admitted to different hospitals and are in critical condition,” Mufti said at a press conference at the party headquarters here on Saturday.
The former chief minister demanded that the Jammu and Kashmir administration sanction a compensation of Rs 50 lakh each for the families of the three deceased.
“I request the Lieutenant Governor that till the time an inquiry is done into the matter, the three families be provided with a relief of Rs 50 lakh each and the injured admitted to hospitals be provided Rs 5 lakh each. Their families are very poor,” she said.
She also referred to a video purportedly showing a few Armymen torturing some suspects.
“I also watched a video that shows Armymen thrashing people and spraying red chilli powder on their wounds. It is a heart-wrenching video, however, I do not know about its authenticity,” Mufti said.
Meanwhile, scores of activists of the Apni Party led by their Kashmir provincial president Ashraf Mir protested at the party headquarters in the Church Lane area here on Saturday against the civilian deaths.
The protestors tried marching out of their office but were stopped by the police.
“We want justice for the killed civilians. A thorough investigation of the case should be done,” Mir said, speaking to reporters.
The National Conference (NC) Saturday also protested over the same issue.
The NC workers shouted slogans demanding authorities to “stop the bloodshed of innocents”. They, too, were stopped by the police when they tried to march out of their party office.
“NC has always condemned terror. We condemn the killing of five armymen. But, we also condemn the killing of innocent civilians. When the government announced the NIA inquiry into the killing of Armymen, then an inquiry should also be launched into the killing of civilians,” the party’s general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar said.
While condemning the killings, Peoples Conference President, Sajad Lone posted on X, “The loss of civilian life in Poonch is a grim reminder of the challenges that we still face. The last three decades have been dotted with such heinous acts. Non-combatants have paid a heavy price. Let the truth be told. In some cases, there was total denial. In some cases cosmetic condemnation. Maybe the 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 for terror has to be followed up with zero tolerance towards rogue terror. Our prayers are with the families.”
Meanwhile, senior CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami demanded a prompt and impartial inquiry into the mysterious death of the three persons.
“Demanding a fair probe into the “mysterious” death of 3 civilians near the encounter spot in Poonch. A prompt & impartial probe is crucial to ascertain the cause of their death,” Tarigami said in a post on X.
“Also condemning in no uncertain terms the militant attack in which 5 soldiers made ultimate sacrifices in the line of duty. My deep condolences to their families,” the CPI(M) leader’s post added.
