NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR: Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Tuesday assured Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti of a probe into the alleged thrashing of terror accused lodged in Tihar jail, including those from her state.
Gauba’s assurance came after Mufti called him following reports of alleged torture and inhuman treatment meted out to 18 inmates on November 21 by security personnel deployed at the high-security Tihar prison.
Separatist leaders had released some pictures of Kashmiri prisoners beaten in Tihar Jail to the media on Monday.
A three-member panel appointed by Delhi High Court to probe the November 21 incident at Tihar in a preliminary report termed the assault on prisoners as a “gross violation of fundamental human and other legal rights of prisoners who were subjected to severe physical torture without any justifiable reason”.
A home ministry official said: “The J&K CM spoke to the Home Secretary on the Tihar incident and requested him to intervene in the matter. She also urged the Centre to take suitable action against the jail staff responsible for the incident.”
The report of the three-member panel said the assault was unilateral aggression against unarmed prisoners and one sided act of violence. The panel also slammed the jail authorities for the “blatant effort to cover their acts”. The panel’s findings on the torture came after it examined the CCTV footage of the high risk ward of the jail complex.
The Delhi High Court had appointed the panel following a petition from Syed Yusuf, son of terror group Hizbul Mujahideen Chief Syed Salahuddin, and an accused in the NIA case relating to terror funding in J&K.
BSF jawan killed by colleague in Kashmir
In a case of fratricide, a BSF jawan was killed by a colleague inside their camp in Bandipora district of J&K. The jawan, identified as Chandarbhan, son of Hari Chand of village Kirmach in Haryana, was found dead near one of the barracks at the BSF headquarters in Madar, Bandipora on Monday evening, sources said.Chandarbhan had an altercation with his colleague Ravinder Singh during the night shift, they said. “Both had an argument, and in a fit of anger Ravinder fired at him, causing his death on the spot,” the sources said. They said BSF personnel rushed to the spot on hearing gunshots. “They overpowered Ravinder and disarmed him.” After questioning, BSF officials handed the accused over to the police.