Raqif Makhdoomi, TwoCircles.net
Kunan Poshpora, a village in North Kashmir’s Kupwara district, carries a story that continues to haunt its people even after 35 years. The victims still await justice. The case has travelled through every court — High Court, Supreme Court and even the State Human Rights Commission — but justice remains a distant dream.
On the night of February 23, 1991, as the village drifted into sleep, around 300 soldiers from the 4 Rajputana Rifles cordoned off the twin villages under the pretext of conducting an anti-insurgency operation. Militant activity had surged in the region in the early 1990s, and the Army claimed they were responding to an attack.
However, a local leader of the Hizb-e-Islami militant group, in an interview with The New York Times, denied these claims, stating that his commandos were armed only to defend themselves. The 4th Rajputana Rifles remained in the village until 9 am the next morning. A rational mind would ask — why were they there for so long? What were they doing? And most importantly, who rapes in retaliation for being fired upon?
A survivor recalls being raped by 8 to 9 men. Imagine one woman, raped 8 to 9 times. What must she have endured? Reading about this night feels like watching all hell break loose. Women still cry as they recount the horrors of that silent night. Since then, the darkness of that night refuses to turn into dawn. A newlywed bride, married just 20 days before, was among the survivors. She had stepped into a new chapter of life, unaware of the fate that awaited her.
Investigations into the incident
Justice Bahauddin Farooqi, former chief justice of the J&K High Court, stated that in his 43 years on the bench, he had never seen a case where investigative procedures were ignored as blatantly as in this one. The First Information Report (FIR), filed after a visit by the local magistrate, listed 23 rape victims. However, the Human Rights Watch assessed the number to be as high as 100. The Army denied the accusations, and the government dismissed the evidence as “insufficient”, labelling the charges as “terrorist propaganda”.
This is the reality of Kashmir. Anything that happens here is dismissed as “propaganda” and buried under bureaucratic silence. But how many people can be lying? 10? 20? Even 50? Here, the number of victims is over 100. Yet, the government’s investigations rejected their testimonies as “baseless”. However, international human rights organisations raised serious concerns about the integrity of these probes. The Human Rights Watch accused the government of launching a campaign to shield the perpetrators and discredit those seeking justice.
Kunan Poshpora is not the only tragedy. Kashmir has witnessed countless massacres — Gaw Kadal, Handwara, Zukura, Doda, Bijbehara. Each one still awaits justice. Each time, the perpetrators remain faceless, and the blame is conveniently shifted to “terrorists”. A few grainy photographs published in newspapers were enough to convince people of their guilt. No one dared to question the official narrative. Why? Because speaking out meant being silenced forever.
The Press Council of India investigated the case in 1991 and concluded that the rape allegations could not be proven. Following this, the government declared the case “unfit for prosecution” and closed it within a month. However, the Human Rights Watch criticised the Press Council’s findings, accusing it of protecting the government rather than uncovering the truth. The United States Department of State, in its 1992 human rights report, stated that there was “credible evidence” supporting the mass rape charges.
In December 2017, the J&K government itself obtained a stay from the Supreme Court on the High Court’s orders. Since then, the case files have been gathering dust. No government, past or present, can claim to have done justice to the victims of Kunan Poshpora. At the time of the incident, the central government was led by the Congress, and the state was under Governor’s rule. In 1996, the National Conference (NC) came to power but ignored the case just as effectively. In 2013, when the NC government returned, they even deleted a crucial part of the confidential report on Kunan Poshpora, which had called for a police investigation. This report had been prepared by the then Divisional Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah.
Litigations in the case
Like countless other cases in Kashmir, Kunan Poshpora’s legal battle has spanned multiple courts, with justice deliberately delayed at every turn. No government has taken it seriously.
In 2004, one of the survivors approached the J&K State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) to demand a reinvestigation. In 2007, more survivors followed. The villagers of Kunan and Poshpora formed the Kunan-Poshpora Coordination Committee (KCC), led by 70-year-old Ghulam Ahmad Dar, to fight for justice.
In October 2011, the J&K Human Rights Commission recommended a reinvestigation and compensation for the victims. But, as expected, the government ignored it. In 2013, a writ petition was filed in the J&K High Court, alleging that over 30 women had been raped. The charges remained unproven, and the trial saw no progress. The High Court directed the government-appointed committee to implement the SHRC’s recommendations swiftly, but nothing changed.
In December 2017, the J&K government approached the Supreme Court against the High Court’s orders. The apex court directed that the appeals be heard expeditiously.
On February 23 this year, the horror of Kunan Poshpora marked 35 years. Even after over three decades, the survivors have no hope of justice. The officers “allegedly” involved were promoted, retired and are now living peaceful lives, while the survivors wake up each day to the haunting memories of that night. In an interview, an Army officer admitted that the incident had happened. But this is Kashmir — who listens? Who cares?
The survivors have nowhere to go. They have spent years narrating their horrific stories to journalists, human rights activists and anyone willing to listen. They have become nothing more than camera attractions. But they do not need cameras. They need justice.
Kunan Poshpora always makes me wonder — how can people be so cruel as to shield the accused in such a soul-shattering event, one that still awaits justice?
(The views expressed are personal. The author is a student of law and Human Rights activist)