An 8-year-old girl was raped and murdered in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua. (Reuters)
Defending the team that probed the Kathua rape and murder case last year, Jammu and Kashmir police chief Dilbag Singh on Wednesday said no witnesses were tortured and but the court's order to file a First Information Report against the investigating police officials would be followed.
The police chief's comments came a day after a Jammu court directed police to register an FIR against six members of the Special Investigation Team, which probed the rape and murder of an eight-year-old in Kathua, for allegedly torturing and coercing witnesses to give false statements.
The court order is being examined and all necessary action will be taken, Mr Singh told reporters in Srinagar.
The court directed that an FIR be registered against Senior Superintendent of Police RK Jalla (now retired), Assistant superintendent Peerzada Naveed, Deputy Superintendents of Police Shetmbari Sharma and Nissar Hussain and Sub-Inspectors Urfan Wani and Kewal Kishore. It also asked the SSP (Jammu) to give a compliance report by the next date of hearing on November 11.
Sources in the police force said an application quashing the lower court's order would be moved before the Jammu and Kashmir High Court soon.
The Kathua rape and murder case ended with the conviction of six people, including the main accused Sanji Ram and dismissed Special Police Officers Deepak Khajuria and Parvesh Kumar who were sentenced to life imprisonment. Three dismissed policemen Anand Dutta, Tilak Raj, and Surender Verma were sentenced to five years in jail.