Criminal case filed against ex-Kashmir chief minister over 2010 killings

In a significant development, a court in the Indian-controlled Kashmir has directed the Srinagar police chief to submit a report on complaints against former chief minister and ex-police officer over the killing of 120 civilians.

The criminal case was filed by Kashmir’s prominent pro-independence group Hurriyat Conference following the war of words between the former chief minister Omar Abdullah and former senior superintendent of police Ashiq Bukhari over the innocent killings.

During election campaigning, Omar had accused Bukhari of being responsible for the 2010 killings. Bukhari responded by saying that he only followed the orders of the former chief minister. He claimed that Omar paid him about 25,000 dollars for arresting Masarat Alam, who spearheaded the 2010 mass protests.The court has given the police chief until April 6 deadline to submit a detailed report.

The region’s human rights activists say the allegations confirm that authorities use monetary rewards, extrajudicial executions, torture and disappearances to scuttle the voices of dissent.

Kashmir’s rights groups have time and again accused the Indian government of failing to prosecute security forces in the region. A rights group released a report in December 2012 and there it documented more than 200 cases and named 500 Indian security personnel involved in crimes including enforced disappearances, killings, rapes, and torture. But, no action has been taken against the accused.

In an unprecedented incident, the former chief minister of Kashmir has been accused of complicity in the murder of 120 people during 2010 civil unrest. Now, many are wondering if the law will take its course or this is simply going to be another mockery of justice.