DG CISF orders another inquiry into Boniyar shootout

Omar calls on bereaved family, douses a flame but seen off with stone pelting on cavalcade

 Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jan 3: Even as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today called on the bereaved family and described the 18-year-old student Altaf Ahmad Sood’s death as “an unacceptable murder”, Director General of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) ordered a departmental inquiry into yesterday’s shootout. CISF inquiry has been launched after the force officials pleaded that the guards had opened fire only when “a violent mob of over 1,000 people” refused to respond to several warnings and attempted to set the buildings on fire.

 Highly placed authoritative sources revealed to Early Times that on express directions from union Home Minister P Chidambaram and union Home Secretary R P Singh, DG of CISF Mr NR Das today visited the spot of yesterday’s shootout. He had an extensive interaction with the Commanding Officer of the battalion guarding different NHPC colonies and installations, Mr Chaturvedi, and others posted at the camp involved in yesterday’s firing.

According to these sources, officers and other personnel of the battalion maintained that the CISF guards had opened fire only after a violent mob of over one thousand people resorted to stone pelting and attempted to set the buildings on fire while ignoring three repeatedly made warnings. Contrary to the peoples’ statements and the state Police version, CISF officials told Mr Das that opening the fire had become “inevitable”. “Otherwise the violent mob would have destroyed the camp and lynched our men’, one of the officers is reported to have told the DG CISF.

The CISF officials described registration of a murder case and arrest of five guards by Police “unwarranted” and insisted that the central force had neither batons nor tearsmoke and other Police equipment to protect themselves, their camps and the installations they were supposed to guard.

Sources said that DG CISF immediately ordered a departmental inquiry that would run parallel to the murder case registered at Police Station Boniyar against the guards on the directions of Chief Minister and Director General of Police, Mr Kuldeep Khoda. Third inquiry is being simultaneously carried out by Additional Deputy Commissioner of Baramulla. According to informed sources, DG CISF made it clear that the departmental inquiry be completed before his retirement from service on January 31^st.

SP Baramulla, Dr Haseeb Mughal, said that Police investigation was underway. He said that five CISF guards had been arrested and three more personnel of the camp detained for questioning as Police were investigating what exactly led to opening of the fire by the guards. He declined to endorse the CISF version at its face value and revealed that 80 to 100 rounds had been fired on the spot.  

Hours before DG CISF’s arrival, leaders of different mainstream and separatist political parties today made a beeline to Boniyar. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was the first who landed at Brigade Headquarters of Rampur at 0915 hours and drove all the way to Altaf Ahmad Sood’s residence at Sakin Brinet. He was accompanied by Congress party’s MLA of Uri and Minister of Irrigation and PHE, Taj Mohi-ud-din, MoS Home Nasir Aslam Wani besides DGP, Kuldeep Khoda. IGP Kashmir, S M Sahai, DIG North Kashmir, Munir Khan, DC Baramulla Bashir Ahmad Bhat and SP Baramulla, Dr Haseeb Mughal, were also in attendance.

Omar extended condolences to members of the bereaved family and assured them that his government would leave no stone unturned to provide relief to them and punish Altaf’s killers. On his return, Chief Minister addressed a gathering of nearly 1,000 residents of Boniyar and adjoining villages close to the spot of yesterday’s firing. He called the 18-year-old student’s death in the shootout as “murder, least acceptable to me” and asserted that his government would get the killers punished. He said that Altaf could never return from death to life but his family would get all possible support, including a road to the village, from his government.

Officials escorting Chief Minister told Early Times that proceedings at Brinet and Boniyar went on smoothly but a crowd of nearly 300 people pelted stones on the rear end vehicles of the cavalcade while shouting anti-Government slogans. However, the cavalcade proceeded without any significant disruption. SP Baramulla confirmed the stone pelting and said that the crowd targeted vehicles of local Police which were in the tail end of Chief Minister’s motorcade. He said that Police dispersed the crowd with mild baton charge and tearsmoke. He added that there was total shutdown in Boniyar, Gingal, Brinet as also at Uri. However, there was no incident of clash between residents and Police or security forces, he said.

SP Baramulla said that PDP President Mehbooba Mufti and JKLF Chairman, Yasin Malik, too visited Boniyar and called on the bereaved family. He said that Police or security forces did not prevent anybody from visiting Boniyar. Residents of several villages, who attended Yasin Malik’s public meeting, said that the JKLF chief blamed mainstream political parties for Altaf Sood’s killing and claimed that the “Indian forces” were unbridled only due to incompetence and non-representative character of mainstream political leaders and the J&K Armed Forces Special Powers Act.

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