JK govt to take legal recourse against Pathribal case closure

Jammu and Kashmir government is contemplating a legal challenge to the Army's closure of the infamous Pathribal encounter case.
"Yes, we will take to legal recourse," state Law Secretary Mohmmad Asharaf Mir told PTI.
"We are first awaiting the judgement pertaining to the closure of the case by Army," he said.
Asked whether the government will move the J&K High Court on the issue, Mir said, "Yes, after we get the judgement copy and we study it and then move onwards."
The state government has written to the Centre seeking a copy of the judgement of the verdict of the Army on the closure of the case and the clean chit given to five officers, he said.

In a controversial decision on January 23, the Army closed the case, saying it has found no evidence against its men.

"The evidence recorded could not establish a prima facie case against any of the accused persons but clearly established that it (the Pathribal encounter) was a joint operation by the police and the Army based on specific intelligence.
"The case has since been closed by Army authorities and intimation given to Hon'ble Court of Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar," an official release announcing the decision to close the case had said.
The closure drew angry reaction from Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who plans to take it up with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

"Extremely disappointed with the decision of the army, I have asked by Law Secretary to find out the future course of action," Omar Abdullah had said.
After a raging controversy over the 2000 encounter in which five civilians were killed on the ground that they were foreign militants, the case was handed over to the CBI.