|
2007-02-04 India-Pakistan
|
|
Top cops arrested in Kashmir
|
SRINAGAR: Police have arrested two senior officials who are alleged to be at the heart of a rogue police and army ring responsible for a series of fake encounters staged in the central Kashmir district of Ganderbal last year.
Ganderbal Senior Superintendent of Police Hans Raj Parihar and Deputy Superintendent of Police Bahadur Ram have been held for their alleged role in the murder of Larnoo resident Abdul Rahman Paddar one of the five victims of the rogue ring who have so far been identified. Both officers were stripped of their charge last month.
A resident of the village of Larnoo, near Kokernag in southern Kashmir, Mr. Paddar had disappeared on December 8, 2006 during a visit to Srinagar. A carpenter by trade, Mr. Paddar had travelled to Srinagar to visit Farooq Ahmad `Tanker,' a Larnoo resident who drew his nickname from his work as a truck driver for the police.
Six days after his disappearance, Mr. Paddar's relatives contacted the office of Srinagar's south-zone Superintendent of Police, Uttam Chand. At that stage, there was little reason to believe that the carpenter had been the victim of a crime. Nonetheless, Mr. Chand ensured that a Missing Person Report was filed, and asked his staff to begin investigation.
Police investigators began by trying to trace Mr. Paddar through his mobile phone. Bharat Sanchar Nigam staff found that while Mr. Paddar's phone number had become inactive, his telephone identified by its IMEI number, 357054000874988 was still running, now fitted with a new SIM card.
Investigators were able to trace the new phone number 9419901156 to Abdul Rashid Wagay, a resident of the town of Hajan. Questioned, Mr. Wagay said he had obtained the phone from assistant sub-inspector of police, Farooq Guddu a key member of Mr. Parihar's counter-terrorism operation in Ganderbal.
Mr. Guddu provided the Jammu and Kashmir Police with a full account of Mr. Paddar's killing. Mr. Paddar, he confirmed, was lured to Srinagar by Mr. Ahmad on December 8. Late that afternoon, a police team led by Mr. Guddu kidnapped the carpenter. He was driven to Ganderbal in a police vehicle, and shot the next day.
Evidence supporting Mr. Guddu's testimony soon emerged. Police were able to locate witnesses who had seen Mr. Paddar with Mr. Ahmad on December 8. It also emerged that Mr. Guddu had been briefly detained by the Central Reserve Police Force at Panzath while on his way to Srinagar, after an altercation with civilians.
During their interrogation, both Mr. Guddu and Mr. Ahmad said they had acted on the direct instructions of Mr. Parihar a claim the special investigation team set up to probe the Ganderbal killings has spent the past fortnight examining. Details of the corroborative evidence found by the police, however, have not yet been made public.
Participants in the rogue cell were driven to murder by the prospect of professional advancement and cash rewards. Interestingly, Mr. Ahmad had taken a bribe of Rs. 75,000 to get Mr. Paddar a job. He could not deliver on his promise and the carpenter was asking for his money back. Mr. Ahmad then allegedly conspired to select the carpenter as a victim so that he did not have to return the money.
By questioning Mr. Parihar and Mr. Bahadur in custody, investigators hope to gain a new insight into at least four separate fake encounters thought to have been organised by the rogue ring in Ganderbal last year. While Mr. Paddar's killing was carried out by the police, the other four murders involved Army jawans. 
|
Posted by john 2007-02-04 13:57||
||
Front Page|| [13 views since 2007-05-07]
Top
|
|
Posted by john 2007-02-04 14:00||
2007-02-04 14:00||
Front Page
Top
|
|
23:08 JohnQC
22:58 JohnQC
20:54 swksvolFF
20:13 Angealing+B.+Hayes4677
20:03 M. Murcek
19:33 DarthVader
19:15 Procopius2k
18:46 Spomonter+Speaking+for+Boskone8031
18:28 M. Murcek
18:28 Ululating Platypus
18:19 Rex Mundi
18:17 swksvolFF
18:12 Rex Mundi
18:11 Ululating Platypus
17:53 jpal
17:52 Frank G
17:44 Huputch Hatrack4765
17:39 jpal
17:38 ed in texas
17:23 jpal
17:00 Deacon+Blues
17:00 trailing wife
16:51 Deacon+Blues
16:44 Gleremble+Bucket3559
|
