Kishtwar civil society doesn’t trust Govt probes ‘VDC men who instigated violence roaming free’ 08 October 2013 Srinagar:Terming the inquiry committees constituted by the state government to probe Kishtwar violence as ‘mere eyewash’, the civil society of the area Monday organised a press conference in Srinagar and accused J&K government of shielding culprits who instigated the August 9 violence. Anjuman-i-Islamia Kishtwar - an amalgam of traders and civil society - alleged that Village Defence Committees have unleashed terror in the region and have been given immunity by the administration to subjugate local populace. “The people who were behind the killings in Kishtwar are roaming free and have resumed their day to day work. The VDC men who were hand in glove with rioters are roaming freely. Even the persons who have been identified by the people for their role in instigating violence are untouched. On the contrary, government is stating that they are absconding. If the government is sincere we can help them to arrest the accused people,” said vice-president, Anjuman-i-Islamia Kishtwar, Riyaz Ahmad, addressing a press conference here. The press conference was also attended by Kashmir Economic Alliance - an amalgam of traders, transporters and hoteliers- who pledged to support the Kishtwar traders and civil society.Riyaz alleged that Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by state government to ascertain facts “is a time consuming exercise aimed to divert attention from the real facts. “SIT has not recorded the statements of the victims and neither has it seemed interested in listening to our pleas. We have run out of options that is the reason we travelled so far to Kashmir to highlight our plight,” Ahmad said. A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted to probe the August 9 clashes and the subsequent incidents of violence in the township. Regarding Gandhi Commission which was constituted to conduct judicial probe of the violence, the civil society alleged that the officials are staying in Jammu.“How can they record the statements of people, when they have set up their office in Jammu and the affected people have to travel there to be heard,” Riyaz informed. The probe was ordered by the state government on August 23. “We want to maintain communal harmony in the region and everybody in Kishtwar knows that there was a conspiracy to divide society on the basis of religion. But what is astonishing is the fact that government despite knowing everything is not acting against the culprits,” he said. Terming the statement of Minister for Rural Development Ali Muhammad Sagar as a “white lie”, in which he had informed the House that police have registered cases against 14 persons in connection with the killing of Lassa Khanday and injuries to four members of a particular community, Riyaz Ahmad said the local administration of Kishtwar is keeping the state government in loop by presenting wrong facts. The delegation of traders and civil society of Kishtwar had come to Kashmir to formally join Kashmir Economic Alliance.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Oct 2013 07:57:26 +0000
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