New Delhi: The Supreme Court today upheld
the life imprisonment awarded by a designated TADA court to a
Pakistan-trained Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist for killing noted
Kashmiri leader Mirwaiz Moulvi Farooq in May 1990 during the
peak of militancy.
A bench of Justices V S Sirpurkar and Mukundakam Sharma
rejected the argument of the terrorist Mohd Ayub Dar that the
confession recorded by the police under the TADA at that time
was erroneous.
"We feel completely satisfied that the confession was
properly recorded and it was also recorded in a free
atmosphere, as AK Suri (Prosecution Witness-2) had given
sufficient time to the accused for the reflection.
"The accused had also at no point of time complained
regarding any coercion to any authority," the apex court said
in a judgement while dismissing Dar`s appeal.
Farooq, father of Mirwaiz Moulvi Umer Faqoor, who is the
leader of moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference, was killed
in the heart of Srinagar city on May 21, 1990, at his house
when Dar, along with two other absconding terrorists Abdul
Rehman Sigan alias Inayat and Zahoor Ahmed alias Bilal walked
into the victim`s house and shot him dead.
The terrorist killed him after branding him to be an
agent of Indian government and CBI.
Though the other accused managed to escape, Dar was
arrested in Delhi and the trial court had, on the basis of
the confession made by him before the SSP Suri, awarded him
life imprisonment for offences under Section 3 of the TADA and
302 RPC (Ranbir Penal Code applicable in Kashmir).
PTI
