By News Agency of Kashmir,
Jammu : The killing of International Democratic Party leader Hoshiar Singh and his trade union leader wife Shashi Bala by suspected terrorists in Samba area has led to an intense debate over the conspiracy theory in the murder of both and injuries to their daughter.
Hoshiar Singh was an active leader in the area and has been instrumental in organizing the meetings of various separatist leaders including Shabir Shah, Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Moulvi Umar Farooq in a predominantly Hindu area of Samba during past some years.
I D Khajuria, a senior IDP leader told News Agency of Kashmir that Hoshiar Singh was not only a political leader but has an ideology over the resolution of vexed Jammu and Kashmir issue. He (Hoshiar Singh) believed that Jammu and Kashmir is a trilateral issue and any solution to it could be found by involving India, Pakistan and people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“I too was receiving threats from unknown people for last over a month, which was also reported to the police in a routine manner. But the ‘target’ killing of Hoshiar Singh and his wife and an attempt to eliminate whole of his family has led credence to a conspiracy to eliminate IDP leaders of the area,” said Khajuria, adding” we demand a judicial probe to bring out the truth behind the killing of Hoshiar Singh and his family members.
Lok Sevak Sambyal, an eyewitness and son of the slain leader Hoshiar Singh alleged that his father and mother were killed as a part of well planned conspiracy. Talking to NAK, he said that unidentified militants were sighted by many morning walkers and when asked about their identity, they claimed that they were armymen and looking for the house of Hoshiar Singh.
“They knocked our door and when my father opened the same they asked if he was Hoshiar Singh and after confirming his identity showered bullets on him. When my mother asked them who they were and what they want, instead of replying to her queries they also sprayed bullets killing her, ” said Lok Sevak adding, “I bolted myself and my wife inside the room while my sister Bindu and her mother-in-law ventured outside after hearing the gunshots and were also hit by bullets.”
“The police theory that they wanted shelter in our house does not hold good as our house is in the midst of a locality and before knocking the door of our house they could have entered into any house, said Lok Sevak Sambyal, adding ” My father was not violent by nature nor we had any firearms in our house so as he could have entered into a verbal dual or exchanged heated words. So there was no need to open fire targeting whole of our family.”
The police was tightlipped over the conspiracy theory.
GOC 9 Corps Vinay Sharma while briefing mediapersons after the encounter was over said that militants target was army area. He, however, refused to comment over the BSF claim that the militants belonged to the group which managed to sneak into this side after an encounter in Samba sector on Friday.