3 J&K civilians killed in custody, allege kin

Three men picked up for questioning in connection with the Thursday terror attack on an army convoy were found dead and their families alleged they were killed in custody, prompting the Indian Army to commit to an investigation into the matter.

- Ravi Krishnan Khajuria

The three civilians were among nine taken from Topa Peer village and the relatives of the deceased alleged that the three men were tortured in custody.

The bodies of Safeer Hussain, 44, Showket Ali, 22, and Shabir Hussain, 32, were found on Friday near the site of the terrorist ambush on two army vehicles, which left four soldiers dead.

The incident prompted protests in the district and as tensions rose, the state government said a probe had been initiated and the families of the victims will be given compensation.

“Reports have been received regarding three civilian deaths in the area. The matter is under investigation. Indian Army stands committed to extending full support and cooperation in the conduct of investigations,” the additional directorate general of public information (ADGPI) of the Indian Army said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

Mohammad Sadeeq, whose 22-year-old nephew Showket was among the deceased, said that at around 9.30am on Friday, the army picked up nine men from the village and taken to the Army’s Mal post, around 2km from the village, and then shifted to Bafliaz post.

“I made frantic calls through the day to the Poonch deputy magistrate Choudhary Mohammad Yasin, SSP Vinay Kumar, a deputy SP of the area and various DDC members informing them about the development. I told them that the men have been detained and that they were being tortured,” said the 45-year-old village head said.

Around 4pm on the same day, Sadeeq said, they were informed of the deaths of the three men.