Shopian case put into cold storage: Omar

SRINAGAR : Former chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Thursday said that the Jammu and Kashmir government has buckled under pressure and put Shopian firing issue into cold storage.

Abdullah expressed surprise over the statement of state government in Supreme Court in which it had stated that Major Aditya Kumar was not named in the FIR relating to the case.

“I am also surprised that with the government’s version before the apex court, what would happen to the commitment the chief minister made in state assembly. Not only once but twice, she made a commitment in the assembly that the FIR would be taken to its logical conclusion but they changed their stand in the Supreme Court,” Abdullah told media persons in Anantnag.

Three young men were killed after the army fired on a group of protesters at Ganaupora village in south Kashmir’s Shopian district on January 27 prompting the police to register an FIR against the army’s 10th Garhwal unit led by Major Aditya Kumar. The case was registered under Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder) and 336 (endangering life) of the Ranbir Penal Code.

SHOPIAN SHUT FOR FOURTH DAY

South Kashmir’s Shopian district on Thursday remained shut for the fourth consecutive day in protest against the killing of two militants and four civilians on Sunday.

A local said that shops and most of the offices remained shut, while streets remained deserted.

Four youths and two militants were found dead after a shootout involving army at Pahnoo, Shopian, on Sunday evening. Two of the bodies — one of a youth and the other of a militant — were found near the site of shooting on Monday morning. An FIR has been registered on the incident based on the army’s version, sources said. HTC