By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCircles.net
A month after an eight-year-old tribal was raped and murdered in Rasana village of Kathua district in Jammu and Kashmir, the protests over the incident are only gaining momentum. On February 16, right-wing group Hindu Ekta Manch took out a protest rally carrying the tricolour and shouting pro-accused and anti-government slogans in Kathua district.
The protests were organised following the arrest of a Special Police Officer Deepak Khajuria by the Crime Branch, who was earlier investigating the case following the girl’s disappearance.
Talib Hussain, a tribal activist who has been spearheading the protests for ensuring justice to the family on January 30, two weeks before the arrest of the SPO in an interview with TwoCircles.net had claimed that more than one person was involved in the rape and murder of the girl.
“The circumstantial evidence says that she was brutally raped and then murdered. Three of her ribs were broken, a leg fractured and bites marks all over the body and an attempt were made to crush her with the stones and she had marks on her body as if she was given electric shocks. We questioned Kathua police that how was it possible for a 15-year-old boy to single-handedly commit such a brutal crime,” Talib had said.
The police had earlier arrested a juvenile for the crime and had alleged that he was single-handedly involved in the case. But when the case was handed over to Crime Branch, it confronted Deepak with the evidence leading to his arrest.
On Sunday, January 25, the students of SKIMS Medical College Bemina organised a protest rally inside the campus demanding justice for the victim and stern punishment for the perpetrators.
A similar protest was organised on Thursday, February 22 by civil society members along with traders, academics, students, and lawyers at Pratap Park in Srinagar against the righ-twing rally which sought the release of the accused.
In Kangan town of Ganderbal district, on February 23 a protest rally was taken out rally was taken out after Friday prayers. The protesters demanded the government to ensure the security of the minorities living in Jammu region and action against the culprits.
On Monday, Feb. 26 All Traders & Manufacturers Association also organised a protest march and sit in at Lal Chowk, Anantnag and submitted a memorandum to the CM seeking exemplary punishment to those involved and sought composition of a time-bound Judicial commission by Chief Justice of J&K.
The Minister of State in the PMO, Dr. Jitendra Singh on February 21 had said that there is no harm in handing over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) whereas the tribal activist says that move is aimed at hushing up the case.
“Hindu Ekta Manch is terrorising the community. Why this hue and cry after the SPO is arrested? And why give the case to CBI when a High court-supervised investigation by Crime Branch is already underway?” asked Talib Hussain.
Talib further said Hindu Ekta Manch members should be booked under contempt of the court and sedition cases.
“They stooped so low by using the national flag to defend the rape and murder accused and now they are gathering information of the community members living in the area in a bid to harass them,” he told TwoCircles.net.
Mohammad Yaseen Khan, Chairman of the Kashmir Economic Alliance has alleged government of hushing up the case by handing it over to CBI.
“If justice is delayed to the victim, it might engulf the whole Valley and government will be held responsible for it,” Khan said during a press conference. Ex-Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah has voiced his concerns over handing the case over to CBI.
The case is being handled by the J&K police. If @MehboobaMufti agrees to hand the case over to the CBI it will be another installment in the price she’s paying to remain CM,” Omar tweeted.
The Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) had also expressed serious apprehensions on the role of police and the local BJP MLA in the alleged rape and murder of an eight-year-old tribal girl in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir.
Linking the case of alleged rape and murder of tribal girl to climate of impunity and human rights violations in the state, the civil society has said that the case reveals the vulnerability of communities living in highly militarised border areas.
“Members of the Gujjar – Bakarwal community, a predominantly Muslim minority community in the Jammu region, has had a long history of persecution, exploitation, violence, and displacement at the hands of the state forces due to their nomadic lifestyle, and knowledge of the local terrain,” said JKCCS in a statement issued to the press.
On Wednesday, January 17, Jammu and Kashmir woke up to a terrible news of the death of an eight-year-old tribal girl, a week after she went missing while doing household chores. The girl belonging to the nomadic Bakarwal community was found dead in Rasana village of Hiranagar, in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir and the family has alleged that she was raped before the murder.
On Sunday, January 21, when a group of protesters was taking out a candlelight march on Kathua highway, the police used tear gas shells and baton charged the protesters and arrested Talib. The police alleged him of creating “law and order” problem.
The arrest of activists led to an outrage in the Legislative assembly which prompted the government to release him on Tuesday, January 23.