 "Yasin Malik asks court for capital punishment in 1990 Kashmiri Pandit murder trial; seeks divorce from wife")
Jailed Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik has asked a Srinagar court to award him capital punishment in the 1990 murder case of Kashmiri Pandit nurse Sarla Bhat, while deciding not to contest the trial proceedings further, according to reports.
Malik submitted a 25-page statement before the Additional Sessions Judge (TADA/POTA) and Special Judge designated under the NIA Act in Srinagar through his counsel, Advocate Abu Adil Pandit. The matter has been listed for the prosecution’s reply on September 19.
Although Malik maintains that he has been falsely implicated in the case, he said that after “deep reflection” and “Istikhara” a voluntary Islamic prayer seeking divine guidance he had decided not to contest the proceedings further. He specifically clarified that his decision should not be considered an admission of guilt or acceptance of the allegations against him, even as he requested the court to impose capital punishment.
The case relates to the abduction and killing of Bhat, who was working as a nurse at Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS). She was abducted and killed on April 18, 1990, and her body was later recovered from Malabagh on the outskirts of Srinagar.
The State Investigation Agency (SIA) filed a 737-page charge sheet in June, naming Malik along with Khurshid Ahmad Chalkoo, Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Mohammad Yousuf Sofi and Ghulam Mohammad Taploo as accused.
Malik has denied any involvement in Bhat’s killing. In his submission, he said he learnt about the murder months after it occurred while he was in judicial custody. He also challenged the prosecution’s reliance on an alleged handwritten JKLF note said to have been recovered from the crime scene.
He rejected the allegation that Bhat was targeted because she was allegedly working as an informer for security forces. Malik maintained that she was an innocent civilian and questioned why his name did not appear in the investigation conducted at the time of the killing.
In a separate personal message included in the same submission, Malik announced his decision to separate from his Pakistani wife, Mushaal Hussein Mullick.
According to reports, Malik said he did not want Mushaal to spend the rest of her life carrying the burden of his circumstances or living as his widow. He urged her to begin a new chapter of her life “with dignity and hope” and expressed his love and respect for Mushaal and their daughter, Raziya Sultana.
With the possibility of spending many more years in prison or facing capital punishment, he said he wanted her to be free to rebuild her life with dignity and hope.
Malik described the decision to end the marriage as deeply painful but said he had taken it after considerable thought. He also stressed that the affidavit was not intended to seek sympathy or compassion, but represented what he considered a final statement of his conscience.
Malik also addressed his daughter in the affidavit and asked her to remain close to her grandmother.
He reportedly urged Raziyah to speak to her grandmother every day, even if only for a few minutes, so that she could feel her granddaughter’s love and support during the difficult period.
The development took an emotional turn after Raziyah responded in a video message. She said that if her father went ahead with the divorce, she would take her own life.
Mushaal has so far not publicly commented on Malik’s decision.
The divorce decision comes as Malik continues to face serious legal proceedings in India.
The JKLF leader has been in custody since 2019 in connection with a terror-funding case and was sentenced to life imprisonment by a special NIA court in May 2022 after pleading guilty to charges.
He is also facing proceedings in connection with the killing of Kashmiri Pandit nurse Sarla Bhat.
In a significant development, Malik has indicated that he does not wish to contest the proceedings in that case and has sought the death penalty instead.
Malik married Mushaal in 2009, and the couple has a daughter, Raziyah.
The latest affidavit has brought an intensely personal dimension to the legal battles surrounding the separatist leader, with his decision to end the marriage now becoming another significant development in his long-running life in custody.
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