STRUCTURES OF VIOLENCE

354 | Structures of Violence
First Information Report [FIR] no.29/1997 u/s 302
[Murder], 34 [Common intention] Ranbir Penal Code,
68
1989 [RPC] was led at the Saddar Police Station .
By communication dated 21 December 2011 from the
Jammu and Kashmir Police information was provided
that a case was registered on 20 January 1997 that
ve persons were apprehended and later on their dead
bodies were recovered from Pampore. Prima facie
offences were established during investigation against
Major Avtar Singh.
The casele was submitted to the Jammu and Kashmir
Home Department to seek sanction for prosecution
under the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir)
Special Powers Act, 1990 [AFSPA].
By further communication dated 9 July 2012 from the
Jammu and Kashmir Police, information was provided
in the form of a letter dated 15 June 2012 from the
D e p u t y S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f P o l i c e [ D S P ] ,
Headquarters, Srinagar that sanction for prosecution
under AFSPA was still awaited in the case. By
communication dated 30 November 2013 from the
Jammu and Kashmir Police it was stated that sanction
for prosecution was yet to be received. By
communication dated 22 April 2014 from the Jammu
and Kashmir Police information was provided that the
case was under investigation as the case had been
submitted for accord of sanction, which was awaited.
Further, communication dated 3 July 2004 from Sub-
Divisional Police Ofcer [SDPO], Sadder, to
Superintendent of Police, City South, Srinagar, was
provided. This communication essentially corrects
certain issues in the investigation and the English
translated site plan and seizure memo's are enclosed.
The communication seeks that sanction for
prosecution be procured.
As per a letter dated 23 October 2000 from the Senior
Superintendent of Police [SSP], Srinagar to the
Deputy Superintendent of Police [DSP], and a
member of the Special Investigating Team, the case
stands registered against Major Avtar Singh and “two
other Army personnel”.
The case was chargesheeted and sanction for
prosecution under AFSPA was sought on 13 October
1998 and was still awaited.
The Ministry of Defence, in its afdavit before the High
Court of Jammu and Kashmir in 2009 on sanctions for
prosecution under AFSPA, stated in relation to this
case that it was not received.
The Government of Jammu and Kashmir, in response
to a RTI on sanctions for prosecution under AFSPA,
stated on 6 September 2011 in relation to this FIR
number that sanction was awaited for the prosecution
of the alleged perpetrators. But, the case details refer
to this as being related to the killing of “Jalil Ahmad
Indrabi”.
Various attempts were made to extradite Major Avtar
Singh from Canada, and then the United States, where
he had ed after being allowed to acquire a passport.
On 9 June 2012, at around 6:30 am California time,
Major Avtar Singh called police authorities in the city in
which he was residing and informed them that he had
killed members of his family and was going to kill
himself.
Subsequently, the dead bodies of Major Avtar Singh
and his family were found by the police authorities at
Major Avtar Singh's residence.
In addition to the discrepancies in the Government of
Jammu and Kashmir document of 6 September 2011,
it is noteworthy that Ministry of Defence has delayed
taking a decision on whether to grant sanction for
prosecution. This has allowed the alleged perpetrators
to evade justice.
It needs to be ascertained whether the Jammu and
Kashmir Government has at all sent the case for
sanction for prosecution to the Ministry of Defence and
whether the Ministry of Defence has misplaced the
case le.
At least after the 2009 afdavit by the Ministry of
Defence, the Jammu and Kashmir Government
should have considered even re-sending the case or
clarifying when and how the case was sent.
In any case, after providing this information before the
High Court of Jammu and Kashmir in 2009 and also in
1997 after the case was led against the personnel of
the army the Ministry of Defence seems to have cared
very little about the Jammu and Kashmir Police
investigations or in instituting a process for delivering
justice.
The available documents do not suggest that even a
Court-Martial was conducted in this case by the army.
With the recent death of Major Avtar Singh, it has
been ensured that no justice, by the rule of law, will
ever be meted out to him. The processes of justice
have therefore ensured impunity.
Case No. 89
Victim Details
Abdul Khaliq Wani [Extra-Judicial Killing]
Son of: Habibullah Wani
Resident of: Tulmullah, Ganderbal District
68 Information on this FIR was sought through the Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information Act, 2009 [RTI] on 7 October 2011. Further
information sought through RTI on 15 October 2013. Further information sought through RTI dated 14 November 2014. A copy of the
FIR has been received to date.