Killing of a truck driver, Waseem Majeed Mir in Baramulla and death of a Gujjar youth, Makhan Din following alleged torture by Police have shocked people in Jammu and Kashmir who have started questioning the government that whether lives of people here matter anymore. Though officials are trying to justify the killing of the driver saying he ignored a security forces’ checkpoint (Naka) forcing the security forces to chase the truck and open fire resulting into his death, the family of the deceased and circumstances negate the claim. Same is about the Gujjar youth of Perody, Billawar. Police claim that he was picked up for questioning for his links with terrorists, which he admitted to, and was let go to get his mobile phone from the home where he committed suicide. The Police theory seems flawed even from a lay man’s point of view. If the youth had confessed that he was involved with terrorism, how the Police let him go. If they had to collect his mobile phone, they would have taken him to his home and searched for the phone. Secondly, Makhan Din recorded his video wherein he alleged that he was brutally tortured by the Police and forced to confess that he had terror links. The concerned MLA too has alleged that both Makhan Din and his father were tortured by the Police.
Fishier is the killing of truck driver Waseem Majid Mir. Officials claim the driver ignored a security forces’ check post, was follow ed for over 23 km, shots were fired aiming (at) tyres to deflate, which forced (the) vehicle to halt at Sangrama Chowk. The driver was injured and rushed to the hospital where he was declared brought dead. Question is that on the way there are several other check points of the security forces. Why didn’t the chasing forces alert them? Secondly, if the shots were fired to deflate the tyres, how come the driver was hit. As per the doctors, the driver had a single bullet injury with both entry and exit wounds and the nature of injury suggested that he was shot at from close range.
Both the incidents are shocking as well as fishy. The family members of the deceased driver are within their rights when they demand that CCTV footage from all the security posts enroute should be made public to ascertain the facts. The UT government should come up clean over these two deaths. While a probe has been ordered in Makhan Din’s death, the government should also order a magisterial probe into the killing of the truck driver. People here have bitter experience of probes in the past. Now that the situation has improved a lot and life has almost normalised in Jammu and Kashmir, there is no scope for such killings. Government’s claims of transparency and fair play are in question. Let there be an impartial probe and findings be shared with the people in a transparent manner. Any kind of foul play would have disastrous consequences. People have starting reposing trust in the system. Let that trust be respected by ensuring that no such killings take place in the future and if anyone found guilty, law should take its own course.