Pulwama firing case: Probe ordered into two civilian deaths

A magisterial inquiry was today ordered into the deaths of two civilians, including a girl, allegedly in firing by security forces yesterday, on a crowd that was holding a protest over an encounter in Pulwama district of south Kashmir.
District Magistrate Pulwama, Niraj Kumar, ordered a time-bound probe to ascertain the cause of the deaths and injuries to the civilians after an encounter between security forces and militants in Kakapora area of the district, officials said.
They said the inquiry officer Additional District Magistrate, Pulwama, Shahbaz Ahmad Mirza, has been asked to submit the inquiry report within 15 days.
The two youths have been identified as Danish and Shahista, a police official said. A crowd of protesters yesterday started pelting stones at security forces at Lillhar in the Kakapora area near the encounter site, he said.

The inquiry officer has said that members of the public who have any information on the incident, may appear before him in his office at the District Administrative Complex Pulwama to record the statement on any working day within a period of six days.
"In case any person desires, he can also file a detailed affidavit duly attested during this period," the officer said.

Meanwhile, the National Conference demanded a time-bound judicial probe into the killing of the two civilians, saying "a mere magisterial inquiry into the incident is not enough".
"A mere magisterial inquiry cannot suffice given the nature and enormity of the tragedy. The party demands a high-level judicial probe into the incident that resulted in the death of two young civilians and injuries to many others," NC General Secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar said in a statement here.

He said the findings of the proposed judicial probe be made public in a time-bound manner.
"Any attempt to subvert the truth would be highly regrettable. Responsibility should be fixed and the guilty should be punished," Sagar said.
National Conference has said that "disproportionate and wanton use of lethal force" on unarmed civilians and incidents like these discredit the principles of democracy and peace.