Home » News » J&K: FIR registered against 10 armymen
The FIR under section 364 and 302 of the Ranbir Penal Code has been lodged in north Kashmir Lalpora police station of Kupwara district against Colonel Rahul Pandey, Major Chahal and eight other armymen of 18 Rashtriya Rifles battalion that was deployed on anti-insurgency duties in the border district of Kupwara early 2004.
The FIR has been lodged on the complaint of one Madan Lal a resident of Jammu who identified one of the photos of the four slain 'terrorists' as that of his son Bhushan Kumar who had been reportedly brought along with three others from Jammu by the 'involved army personnel' after promising them employment as porters in their unit.
During the last parliamentary election held here in April 2004, the 18 RR had claimed having killed 'four foreign terrorists' in the north Kashmir Lolab village of Kupwara district after a 'fierce encounter' at Devar (Lolab) on April 20, 2004.
While bodies of the two slain 'terrorists' had been buried by the army, those of the other two had been defaced and were handed over to local police for burial.
It is important to mention that the lid was blown off this gruesome murder of 'unarmed innocent civilians' by an anonymous letter written by a soldier to family of one of the four victims.
The letter posted from New Delhi had claimed that Major Vijay Singh Chahal, Naik Jai Singh and two army soldiers had brought the four persons to a company headquarters of 18 RR from Jammu after promising them employment on April 13 2004.
The letter said that a week later on April 20 the four persons were allegedly killed in an 'encounter' near Devar village and weapons were planted on them to brand them as terrorists.
The letter had alleged that the 'fierce gunbattle was staged to get recognition for gallantry'. The FIR has identified all the four slain as Hindu labourers namely Bhushan Kumar of Mangu Chack, Satpal of Chatha, Ram Lal of Lalayal villages in Jammu and Ashok Kumar of Pathankot in Punjab.
The army has also ordered an inquiry into the reported 'murder of civilians'. The inquiry headed by a brigadier has been completed and the inquiry officer has met the relatives of the four victims and he is scheduled to submit his report to his seniors this week.