Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti yesterday visited curfew-bound Handwara town to take stock of the situation as the central government said it would send more paramilitary forces to the state which has been on the boil for four days over civilian killings.
Mufti was accompanied by state Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh, Chief Secretary B R Sharma and Director General of Police K Rajendra Kumar. She met relatives of youths killed in Handwara on Tuesday when security forces opened fire on protesters.
Five civilians have died in violence in north Kashmir Kupwara district since Tuesday in firing by security forces.
Her visit to Handwara comes as restrictions imposed by authorities and a shutdown called by separatists continued in Srinagar for the fourth day.
The chief minister, meeting with relatives of those killed, expressed condolences and asserted that the state government would ensure that anybody found guilty of having violated the standard operating procedure (SOP) during Tuesday’s incident would face action.
“I had wanted to visit Kupwara with a special economic package, but it is unfortunate that I had to come to console the bereaved families,” Mufti said.
In New Delhi, Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi held a meeting of senior officials from the Intelligence Bureau, ministry of defence, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and the ministry of home affairs to review the situation and assess the requirements of the Kashmir government to bring the situation under control without any more loss of life.
“The central government is concerned over the loss of human lives in J&K during the last four days. It was decided to send additional Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to strengthen the security grid in the Kashmir Valley,” a home ministry statement said.
The statement said the ministry has promised “full co-operation and support to the government of J&K to ensure that there is no further loss of lives.”
Meanwhile, the mother of a young girl allegedly molested by a soldier in Handwara town which triggered the violent protests in the Valley, yesterday approached the state high court claiming that her daughter was being held in “unlawful confinement” by the state police.
The mother has also alleged that the statement attributed to her daughter in which she said there had been no molestation attempt on her had been obtained by police ‘under coercion’.
The state high court has directed the state police to come up with their reply quoting the provisions of law under which they were holding the girl in custody.
The court also ordered that the police should not record any statement of the young girl till April 20 and she be produced before the chief judicial magistrate (CJM) in Kupwara on that day where her statement will be recorded.