Body Of Guard Allegedly Killed By Cops Exhumed In Kashmir

Srinagar: Following a Supreme Court order, a team of police officers in the presence of a sessions judge, today exhumed the body of a man who was allegedly killed by the police in Srinagar.

"The body of Shabir Ahmad Mir was exhumed from a graveyard in Batamaloo, for conducting a postmortem to ascertain the cause of his death. It has been taken to a hospital here for autopsy," a police official said.

On August 12, the Supreme Court had ordered that the body of the 26 year old security guard be exhumed in the presence of a District and Sessions Judge and a fresh autopsy be conducted.

Security forces in Srinagar maintain that Mr Mir had succumbed to injuries sustained in clashes that erupted in the city on July 10. But Mr Mir's father, Abdul Rehman Mir had alleged that his son was killed by security forces at his home and was not involved in the protests in Srinagar. He had accused police officials naming senior police officer Yasir Qadir of killing his son.

The Chief Judicial Magistrate, on two occasions, directed the police to register a complaint against the officers allegedly involved in the murder of Mr Mir, but no action was taken. The state government moved a petition before the Jammu and Kashmir High Court seeking relief, but the court upheld the order directing the police to comply with its directions.

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Later in a notice to the police, the Chief Judicial Magistrate asked why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against the police chief for failing to register a complaint against the accused officers. The state government then approached the Supreme Court, which directed that Mr Mir's body be exhumed and a fresh autopsy be conducted.