Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir police will register a murder case against an Army major and some civilians for allegedly luring three youths to the border and staging a fake encounter in Machil sector of north Kashmir, officials said.
The state government has also ordered a detailed probe into the incident.
The incident took place on April 30 when 4 Rajputana Rifles of Army claimed to have shot dead three militants who were attempting to enter into the Valley from across the
border. However, the claim of the Army was contested by the family members of Muhammad Shafi, Shehzad Ahmed and Riyaz Ahmed who said they were not militants.
The police had registered a missing report on April 27 in this regard which was later converted into a kidnapping case. Going by the developments, the police is now planning to change the same into a case of murder.
Police has also asked the Army authorities to cooperate and handover its officers for interrogation, they said.
The exhumation of bodies was expected to take place after which a fresh post-mortem would be conducted.
State government, meanwhile, has ordered a magisterial enquiry into the case and also taken up the matter with the Defence Ministry.
Sources in the state government said Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was disturbed about the developments and had asked his officers not to spare anyone who had indulged in
the senseless killings.
PTI
First Published: Friday, May 28, 2010, 13:00