Indian police denounce army captain for killing three men in Kashmir valley

The men – workers Abrar Ahmad Khan, Imtiyaz Ahmad and Abrar Ahmad Yousuf, who had left their homes in search of work – were killed in an army operation in July. Local police recovered live pistols and cartridges from the site, and a special investigation unit said the army had initially portrayed the victims as “militants.”

Indian police use violence as a shortcut to justice.  It is the poorest who carry the scars

In a statement on Sunday, police accused Captain Bhoopendra Singh and another of kidnapping and killing the men, saying they had organized the killings as a fake military encounter and that they had “planted weapons and illegally acquired material in their homes. corpses after stripping them of their identity and labeling them strong terrorists. ”

Police added that Singh had decided “deliberately and intentionally” not to follow standard operating procedures in Kashmir.

The Indian army has not indicated whether the captain will be tried under civil jurisdiction or in a military court. Under an emergency law enacted in Jammu and Kashmir since 1990, Indian army soldiers cannot be tried in civilian courts under ordinary jurisdiction without the permission of the federal government.

Parts of the greater Kashmir region are claimed by India, Pakistan and China, while local groups have also fought for greater autonomy or complete independence. Thousands have died during the decades-long conflict and activists have routinely complained of human rights violations by Indian authorities and soldiers.

Trials of army officers for alleged crimes and abuses are rare, however, and similar claims of staged incidents have been made in the past, making the investigation and charges even more unusual.

Last year, the Indian government divided the former state of Jammu and Kashmir into two territories of the union, revoking its former limited autonomy and increasing New Delhi’s control over the Muslim-majority region.
Tens of thousands of soldiers were sent to the region in a major crackdown, accompanied by an internet blackout and severe restrictions on journalists.

.Source