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Army Captain, 2 Others Named In J-K Police Charge Sheet On ‘Encounter’

The Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Police Saturday filed a charge sheet in a local court against three persons, including an Army captain, for their involvement in the controversial ‘encounter’ of three youths on 18 July in Shopian district.

The youth, identified as Ibrar Ahmed (16), Imtiyaz Ahmed (25) and Ibrar Ahmed (20), had been reported missing by their families based in Rajouri. The youth had travelled to Shopian in search of work in an apple orchard, their families said.

Two sources in the J&K Police confirmed that three named in the charge sheet are Captain Bhupinder of Rashtriya Rifles 62 battalion, Tabish Nazir Malik of Chowgam area in Shopian district, and Bilal Ahmed Lone, a Pulwama resident.

“An FIR number 42/2020 was registered in the matter which was converted into a 302 (murder) case. The charge sheet has now been filed,” a senior police officer told ThePrint on the condition of anonymity.

ThePrint contacted Director General J&K Police Dilbag Singh and Inspector General Vijay Kumar for a comment via phone calls but did not receive a response until the time of publishing this report.

An Army spokesperson Thursday had issued a statement saying the process of summary evidence had been completed in the Amshipora (Shopian) encounter of 18 July 2020, in which three labourers were killed although they had no connection with any militant activity.

The Army said the summary of evidence was being examined by legal experts to ascertain if further action was needed in this case.

“Indian Army is committed to ethical conduct of operations. Further details will be shared in a manner so as not to prejudice the proceedings under Army Law,” said the Army spokesperson.

The encounter

According to a press statement issued by J&K Police on 18 July, the Shopian “encounter” took place based on a “specific input by 62RR (Rashtriya Rifles) about the presence of terrorists in the village Amshipora area of District Shopian”.

The statement also specified that police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) joined the encounter “later”, a detail that marked a slight departure in protocol. Statements about joint operations in the Valley do not generally specify the chronology of security forces’ participation.

Back in August, photos of the three bodies of the youth were circulated on social media, leading to the families identifying them as their relatives.

In the last week of September, their DNA samples were matched, confirming their identity.

On 18 September issued the Army issued a statement saying that prima facie evidence showed the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFPSA) had been “exceeded”, and that directions had been passed to initiate disciplinary proceedings against erring officials.

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Shankul Bhandare

Hello, I am shankul and I love defence research and development and want to spread it through blogging.

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