Shopian rape case: CBI finds loopholes in SIT probe

The CBI team has found some loopholes in the probe conducted by Special Investigative Team of Jammu and Kashmir police in the Shopian rape and murder case.

Srinagar: The CBI team has found some
loopholes in the probe conducted by Special Investigative Team
of Jammu and Kashmir police in the Shopian rape and murder
case.

The team, which has started the investigation from the
beginning, will also be taking the advice of forensic experts
whether exhuming the bodies of Neelofar and his sister-in-law
Aasiya, allegedly raped and murdered, after 120 days of the
incident will serve any purpose, official sources said.

The investigators are also looking out for a person who
has cleaned froth from Neelofar`s mouth.

The nine-member team which arrived here on Thursday has
discovered that several leads were not investigated properly
by the SIT, including the letter which was purportedly written
by a male classmate of Aasiya claiming she might have been
murdered by her own family member, the sources said.

The letter, which was received at a police station in
the newly carved out district in the Kashmir valley, claims
that the two were on friendly terms and this was not liked by
her brother Shakeel Ahmed Ahanghar.

The letter was posted immediately after unrest broke out
following recovery of the bodies of Aasiya and Neelofar on May
30 but it was reported to have been delivered at the police
station only after the 47-day-long protests ended, sources
said.

The writer of the letter claimed that he had met Aasiya
on the fateful day of May 29 along with Neelofar at the nearby
orchards. However, they were spotted by Shakeel, prompting the
two women to run away from the area.

He had, in the letter, requested the police to
investigate the matter, fearing the victims may have been
murdered by family members.

The team, which is headed by Deputy Inspector General of
Police, CBI, Satish Golcha, had held discussions with the
Special Investigating Team led by Inspector General of Police
(Kashmir range) Farooq Ahmed.

Notwithstanding its opposition, the Government had
directed the CBI on September 15 to investigate the case.

In a statement, a CBI spokesman said the agency had not
issued any press release regarding the investigations in the
Shopian case.

"It is the policy of the CBI not to reveal anything
during the investigations," he said.

Bureau Report

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