Handwara firing: CM visits kin, says won't tolerate harm to civilians

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, said on Saturday that civilian killings are unacceptable and that she won’t tolerate harm coming to civilians during the security forces’ dealing with law and order situations in the State.

She said she had a telephonic conversation with Defence Minister, Manohar Parrikar, on Friday evening and earlier met Udhampur-based chief of Army’s Northern Command, Lt. Gen. D. S. Hooda, and told them that Handwara and Natnusa like incidents in which five people were killed in security forces’ firings and other actions are unacceptable and come as a major setback to the efforts of the State government in consolidating peace dividends in the state.   

Read: Handwara firing: Family says girl forced to deny molestation charges

Mufti on Saturday flew to Kupwara, the district headquarters, for an ‘on-the-spot’ assessment of the situation arising out of current unrest and to hold a meeting with senior officials of civil administration, police, Army and other security forces to discuss measures to contain it. An official spokesman here said that she also met the victims’ families to offer her condolences besides holding an interaction meeting with the prominent members of the civil society to seek their help towards defusing the situation. She was accompanied by BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister, Dr. Nirmal Kumar Singh.

Read: Handwara firing: J&K police detains 16-year-old molestation victim, father

She said, “I’ve told Lt. Gen. Hooda to exercise maximum restraint while dealing with law-and-order situations. The Defence Minister has assured me of time-bound investigation into the unfortunate incidents that led to the death of civilians during protests at Handwara and Natnusa so that exemplary punishment is given to those found guilty”. She said she wanted to be with the people at this hour, grasp the sequence of events that led to the cycle of violence and the action taken by the law-enforcing authorities.

Read: HC queries J&K police on 'detention' of girl, kin in Handwara

She said she was deeply saddened by the series of unfortunate events which led to the death of four young boys and a woman. “I never dreamt of coming to Kupwara like this after taking over as the Chief Minister. It is most unfortunate,” she said. She earlier told the official meeting that the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) should not remain a mere word but become a potent tool while dealing with law-and-order situations.

Read: Handwara firing: Centre sends more forces, asks J-K to ensure no loss of lives

Opposition National Conference (NC) said that Mufti’s Kupwara visit was a classic case of ‘too little, too late’, especially after the Chief Minister chose to remain in New Delhi while the youth were losing their lives in the Valley.

Former minister and NC’s provincial president Nasir Aslam Wani said in a statement here that the Chief Minister held “purely political and partisan” meetings in New Delhi while the youth were being killed in Handwara and elwehere in Kupwara district and asked her to clarify what apparent sense of urgency compelled her to meet BJP president Amit Shah and national general secretary Ram Madhav in Delhi when she should have rushed back to the Valley as soon as possible.

Read: Handwara firing: Curfew-like restrictions continue in Kashmir

"All these meetings were aimed at safeguarding her own political interests and those of her party and her continued refusal to rush back to the Valley is unpardonable. Then the insensitive, ruthless act of presenting a bouquet of flowers to the Prime Minister at a time of such misery and pain in the Valley is contemptuous to the bereaved families and the people of the State in general,” Wani said.