Jammu (J&K): Once awarded for bravery, killing a militant, and helping the Army, a J&K man is at his wit's end in his struggle to get back his son's body who, ironically, was declared a militant and killed in an encounter in Srinagar in November.
After his appeals to the J&K government went unheard, Mohammad Latief, father of Amir Magray, one of the four persons killed in the November 15 encounter in Hyderpora, Thursday filed a petition in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court seeking his son's body, maintaining his “innocence” and the family’s long contribution in the fight against militancy.
The 18-page petition was filed through lawyers Deepika Singh Rajawat and Mohammad Arshad Chowdhary.
The move came two days after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police probing the Hyderpora encounter claimed that while one civilian was killed by a foreign militant, two others, including a local “militant” (Magray), died in the crossfire after being used as a human shield by the hiding foreigner.
A Pakistani militant and three other persons were killed in Hyderpora on November 15. The police claimed that all the slain men had links to militancy. The families of the three, however, alleging foul play, had claimed that they were innocent, prompting the police to order an inquiry. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha had also ordered a magisterial probe into the incident.
"That being close to Amir, the petitioner knew everything good and bad about him, thus can state on oath that his son was never involved into any anti-national activities or was associated with any such outfit that conspires to bring harm to the nation,” Latief, a resident of Gool area of Ramban district, said in his petition.
Invoking Article 21 of the Constitution which extends the right to have decent burial as per religious ceremonies and rules, for his son, the petitioner said he has been instrumental in fighting and curbing militancy in Gool and Singaldan area by working as a civilian volunteer with the Army.
READ: Hyderpora encounter: Amir Magray's family still waiting for his body
Referring to an incident of August 6, 2005, when he along with his wife and other family members killed a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant who barged into his house and fired indiscriminately upon the inmates, the petitioner said he was conferred the State Award for Bravery for the year 2012 by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir for showing exemplary courage despite being injured in the firing, which also resulted in the death of his cousin.
“That apart from the same, the petitioner has been well appreciated by the Indian Army for his service towards the nation in eliminating militancy in his area — Gool Sangaldan, Ramban,” the petition said, enclosing copies of appreciation letters and certificates given to him by authorities in acknowledgement of his service.
"It is obvious that Amir was groomed in an atmosphere of patriotism and away from anti-national activities and forces, thereby, associating Amir with terrorism is not justified to any stretch of the imagination and shall also discourage all those who hold India close to their hearts and are fighting terrorism in a difficult situation in Jammu and Kashmir, without caring about their lives and families," the petition said.
Seeking an early hearing of his plea, the petitioner pleaded in his appeal that the exhumation of Amir’s body needs to be done at the earliest to save it from getting fully decomposed.
