Srinagar,June 01 :THE J& K Police are expected to seek Major Opinder Singh’s custody for his role in the alleged murder of three youth of Nadihal in Baramulla on April 30, which was passed off as the army’s encounter with militants.The police said Maj. Singh’s alleged motive might have been the Rs 4.5 lakh reward money, the credit for gunning down militants and also a possible promotion later.
The Major made local contacts while working with the G2 unit of Military Intelligence in Baramulla before his posting to Kalaroos in Kupwara with 4 Rajput Rifles, police sources said.
The sources said it was in Baramulla that he befriended Abbas Shah of Territorial Army. He approached Abbas and got him to arrange a few men for a “ fake encounter”. Abbas, the police said, sought the help of Abdul Hamid Bhat of Baramulla, who in turn asked Bashir Ahmad Lone, former special police officer of Nadihal, a former special police officer, to identify the victims.
The sources said Bashir revealed that the Major paid him and his two accomplices, Rs 50,000 each for arranging the “ unidentified militants”. A police officer said the Major might have received Rs 4.5 lakh as reward for the operation — a faction of which he paid to the middlemen.
After completing their preliminary investigation, the police are going to seek the custody of the Major. “ We are likely to write to the army in the next two days to seek By Naseer Ganai in Srinagar Villagers gather near the coffins of three men killed in a fake encounter.custody of the Major who had led the operation,” a police official said.
On April 30, the army claimed to have killed three “ terrorists attempting to cross the Line of Control in the morning hours in the Machil sector in Kupwara”. Later, it handed over the bodies to the police at Kalaroos in Kupwara.
The army, sources said, had asked the police at Kalaroos to record it as joint operation but the police refused after it got suspicious over the recovery of five AK- 47 rifles from three “ militants” and bullet marks on their heads.
Later it transpired that the youth were Muhammad Shafi ( 19), Shezad Ahmad ( 25) and Riyaz Ahmad ( 19) who went missing from Nadihal Rafiabad in Sopore district on April 27.
“ For a few days there was no breakthrough. It compelled us to seek call detail record of three persons.
Then we zeroed in on Bashir.One of the killed youth was a close friend of Bashir,” a police officer said. Bashir was taken into custody and after sustained questioning he broke down and named Abdul Hamid Bhat of Baramulla as co- conspirator.
Bhat revealed the name of Abbas Shah of Territorial Army’s 161 Battalion. The army allowed the police to grill Abbas and he spilled the beans.On April 29, Bhat, Abbas Shah and Bashir took the three youth to Kalaroos.
They were handed over to the Major who allegedly killed them on the intervening night of April 29 and April 30.
On Friday, the bodies were exhumed and the parents identified the three youth.
They were shot in the head from point blank range, the police said. The army has ordered a high- level inquiry into the fake encounter on Saturday evening.