Opposition PDP and separatist groups in Jammu and Kashmir today lashed out at Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for his statement on Gool firing by BSF, accusing him of pre-empting the inquiry ordered into the incident that left four persons dead and 40 others injured.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said Omar's remarks on Gool killings, in which he reportedly held a local religious leader responsible for the trouble, is an attempt to repeat the Shopian farce in the name of an inquiry.
"The Chief Minister's comments on Gool are not just irresponsible but are a deliberate attempt to shield the guilty. It reminds one of the sequence of events in the Shopian tragedy where the death of the two unfortunate women was ultimately closed as a case of drowning and prosecution launched against lawyers, doctors and those who sought justice against the deceased," she said.
The Chief Minister, in local media reports, was quoted as saying that the local Imam had spread baseless rumours about desecration of Holy Quran which instigated people to attack the BSF camp. Omar also asked the separatists to enter into dialogue with the Centre for resolving Kashmir issue.
Mehbooba said it seems that a similar course of events is being followed in the Gool killings which might ultimately end up in action against the victims.
"One hopes that the killings are not attributed ultimately to wild animals and people like the local Imams prosecuted for the atrocities committed by the men in uniform," said Mehbooba.
The PDP president said there are tell tale signs of anarchy in the entire state.
"A teenage girl was gang-raped in Kishtwar and in all likelihood the chief minister might issue a clean chit even to the perpetrators of that heinous crime," she added.
Syed Geelani Ali Shah Geelani also hit out at the Chief Minister saying he was issuing the statement to please "people in Delhi".
He said the incident should be probed by an independent authority in which the government cannot interfere.
