Srinagar, Apr 3: Kashmir’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday expressed hope that justice would be delivered in the Ganderbal encounter case and those responsible would be held to account and punished.
“As the deeply distressing news reports of the killing of a young man, Raashid Ahmed Mughal, at Arhama, Ganderbal, in a claimed encounter came yesterday, his family saying that he was a part-time computer operator with no links to militancy who was picked up and killed in cold blood, painful memories of such encounters got revived,” Mirwaiz said.
He was addressing the Friday congregation at the Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta locality here.
He said now that Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has ordered an inquiry, he hopes that “this time justice gets done”.
“His (Mughal’s) family seeks justice through an impartial probe. We can only hope that justice is done, as past experiences do not inspire confidence. But, let us hope that, as news came that L-G sahib himself has ordered an inquiry, this time justice gets done and those responsible are held to account and punished,” he said.
The Mirwaiz added that not giving Mughal’s body to the family for burial “is inhuman and condemnable”.
Sinha on Friday ordered a magisterial probe into the encounter in Ganderbal district in which one alleged terrorist was killed by security forces.
Several mainstream leaders, including Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, had raised questions about the encounter that took place on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Mirwaiz said “targeting of Kashmiris” by multiple agencies creates an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.
“Almost daily, there are reports in newspapers of cases, chargesheets and arrests of Kashmiris by the multiple agencies operating here, SIA, CIK, Cyber Cell, ACB, NIA, on one ground or another. This creates an atmosphere of fear and intimidation and reinforces the narrative that portrays an entire people as dangerous and suspect to be kept under check,” he said.
“This coercive policy cannot build viable peace or lead to progress if that is what the authorities seek, as they claim,” he added.
