Srinagar, April 06: In March, the Border Security Force ( BSF) was forced to hand over commandant A. K. Birdi to the police in connection with the February 5 killing of teenager Zahid Farooq.
About two months before that the BSF had moved the chief judicial magistrate’s ( CJM) court in Srinagar seeking permission to try another BSF officer deputy commandant Kuldeep Singh, against whom the police had registered a case of “ custodial death of a civilian” in 1991.
Sources said BSF deputy inspector general Wajid Ali filed an application before the court in December.
Singh was an inspector when the case was registered and is at present posted as a deputy commandant with the 97th battalion under Ali’s command.
Singh is charged with the custodial death of Muhammad Maqbool Gapoo. The 69th battalion had taken Gapoo in custody on December 30, 1991, during a crackdown at Asraf Kadal Ranawari in Srinagar.
The next day the BSF told Gapoo’s kin to collect his body from the force’s camp.
Gapoo allegedly died during interrogation as his body bore torture marks.
The police registered an FIR against Singh as Gapoo was in his custody. However, Singh was not arrested. The police said Singh was not presented before them despite many intimations given to the BSF.
—Agencies