Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Government on Friday night
appointed a one-member Commission under retired Supreme Court
judge H S Bedi to probe the custodial death of ruling National
Conference worker Syed Mohammed Yusuf Shah.
The name of 65-year-old Justice Bedi was proposed by the
Union Law Ministry to the state government which accepted it.
The Commission will probe the entire circumstances
leading to the death of 61-year-old Yusuf during his custody
with Crime Branch of Jammu and Kashmir police on September 29.
The Commission has been asked to complete its probe in
six weeks, an official spokesman said.
Justice Bedi is a former Chief Justice of Bombay High
Court and retired as Supreme Court judge on September five
this year.
Yusuf, also known as Haji Yusuf, was arrested for
allegedly duping people of money promising them government
jobs, MLC seats and ministerial berths, citing his proximity
with top NC leadership.
A simultaneous probe into the alleged criminal activity
of the deceased will continue with the crime branch, officials
said.
His death snowballed into a political controversy after
he was summoned by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on September
28 to ascertain whether he was taking money from people on the
pretext of getting them ministerial berths.
He along with two others -- Salam Reshi and Mohammed
Yusuf Bhat -- were arrested from the Chief Minister's
residence on September 28.
Haji Yusuf died the following day and postmortem reports
opined that he had suffered a massive cardio-respiratory
failure.
Two people including Bhat and a mimicry artist Aizaz Bhat
have already recorded their confessional statements before a
magistrate against Haji Yusuf.
PTI
First Published: Friday, November 18, 2011, 21:42