STRUCTURES OF VIOLENCE

488 | Structures of Violence
[Name and identifying information withheld on the
request of the victim/witness] [Torture, Sexual
violence]
Occupation: Housewife
Resident of: Palhallan, Pattan, Baramulla district
Brother of victim [Name and identifying information
withheld on the request of the victim/witness] [Torture]
Occupation: Shopkeeper
Resident of: Palhallan, Pattan, Baramulla District
Alleged Perpetrators
1. Major Sinha [operational name: Liyaqat Ali
Khan], Palhallan army camp
2. Subedar Mohan Singh, Palhallan army camp
3. Guard Commander Shravan Singh, Palhallan
army camp
4. M o h a m m a d L a t e e f M i r a l i a s J a r r a ,
Government Gunman
5. Abdul Shaban Tantray, Government Gunman
6. Riyaz Ahmad, Government Gunman
7. Saeb Hajam [Nickname/Code name],
Government Gunman
8. Abdul Rasheed, Government Gunman
9. Ghulam Mohammad Waza alias Amma Waza,
Government Gunman
Case Information
In end 1996, the victim was a minor. Personnel of the
army abducted her from her home in the morning in the
presence of her father. They were guided by a
government gunman named Lateef; the wife of
another gunman, Ama Waza [resident of Daselpora,
Palhallan]; and a neighbor of hers. The army and the
gunmen were interested in the whereabouts of her
neighbor who was a militant with the Hizbul
Mujahideen.
The army and gunmen took her to the Palhallan army
camp and kept her there until the evening. At the army
camp, Major Sinha alleged that she was hiding arms
for the militants and promised her a sum of Rs. 1 lakh in
return for this information. But she knew nothing, so,
she told him this. She would later come to know that
they had also abducted her brother from his school.
First, the gunmen, under the instructions of Major
Sinha, stripped her of all her clothes. Then they beat
her with sticks, many of which kept getting broken.
Then they used a thick roller on her legs. They poured
melted polythene into her vagina. After that, she lost
consciousness. When she woke up, she was bleeding
from her vagina.
During her torture, they brought in her brother. He had
been badly tortured as well. His hands were tied
behind him with ropes and he was unable to walk. Her
torturers told her brother to ask her to reveal the
location of the weapons she possessed. Her brother
pleaded to them to let her go.
It was only after a relative intervened that the gunmen
and army let her go. The gunmen had stolen her
earrings and sandals. Upon her return, the army drove
her family out of their house and didn't allow them to
come back for ve days.
Due to her torture, the victim has had difculties in
conceiving children and has had multiple abortions; in
fact, she started menstruating only after she was
tortured. After the torture, she received treatment from
Pattan and Barzulla Hospitals. Her treatment
continues to this day. Her family did not register an FIR,
as they feared retaliation from Major Sinha.
The victim gave the above statement to the IPTK on 15
June 2015.
The victim's statement is clear, and cogent evidence is
presented of the torture/sexual violence by the alleged
perpetrators. The allegations warrant further
investigation and they are also corroborated by the
statement of the brother as provided below, also
provided to the IPTK.
The brother of the above victim states that the army
created a committee in the village of which many
village elders with links to the government gunmen
were a part of. The army and the gunmen abducted his
sister on recommendations of this committee on
grounds that her brother [witness] was a militant and
kept his weapons with his sister. The members of this
committee were Kamal Bhat [dead], Abdul Khaliq Bhat
[now Sarpanch], Jalal-ud-din Bhat [now Deputy
Sarpanch], Abdul Aziz Rather [dead], Ghulam Nabi
Tantray [dead], Ghulam Nabi Kochak [dead]. All the
dead listed were killed by militants.
Around September/ October, 1996 the witness was
abducted on his way from home to school where he
th
had to attend a farewell party before his 10 grade
exams. Gunmen Abdul Shabaan Tantry and Abdul
Rasheed told him “Major Sahib needs cigarettes”
referring to Major Sinha alias Liaqat Ali. Then they took
him to Major Sinha who asked the witness if he knew
the whereabouts of militants in the area. The militants
replied that he knew of militants but had no contacts
with any. Then the three took him to the Army Camp
located in the Pandit houses in Palhallan and he was
subjected to torture. His torture was carried out by
Ghulam Mohammad Waza alias Amma Waza,
Mohammad Lateef Mir alias Jarra, Abdul Rasheed,
Riyaz Ahmad and “Saeb” [Nickname/Code name].
A roller was rolled over his legs and stomach with two
men rolling it on each side. His toes, feet and private
parts were subjected to torture using an electric
current. His head was put into a bucket of chilli water
while 2-3 men sat on his back and pushed his head into
the water trying to choke him. He was also hung upside