Former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti seeks inquiry into Srinagar encounter

SRINAGAR: Former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Friday demanded that Lt Governor Manoj Sinha order an "impartial investigation" into the killing of three persons in what security forces said was an encounter at Lawapora on Srinagar's outskirts.

The Peoples Democratic Party President also demanded his intervention to ensure that the bodies of the deceased were handed over to their families for burial.

"I am sure you are aware of the unfortunate incident at Parimpora on December 30. Three boys, the youngest one all of 17 years, were killed in what the families have alleged to be a staged gunfight. This incident has come close on the heels of an inquiry that held an Army Captain guilty of a fake encounter at Amshipora in Shopian. Again, the three victims now established as innocent through an investigation were killed and later dubbed as militants," her letter reads.

"You and I may not agree on most political matters that concern Jammu and Kashmir but I am certain that we agree that such incidents bring disrepute to the armed forces and are a grave violation of human rights."

"I urge you to intervene and ensure that these families get a chance to perform their last rites as per their wishes. Questions are looming over this encounter as well and there are conflicting versions and reports from the police and the Army. Justice can be served only if it's swift," she said. (IANS)

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