Hyderpora Gunfight: Bodies of 2 slain exhumed from Handwara

UNI/Precious Kashmir News

Srinagar: The mortal remains of two people- Altaf Bhat and Mudassir Gul- killed in the Hyderpora encounter have been exhumed from frontier Kupwara district, top sources said on Thursday.

The bodies will be handed over to their respective families for last rites in the intervening night of Thursday-Friday and the last rites were attended only by a few relatives.

They said bodies of Bhat and Gul – the two “civilians” were exhumed this evening from Waderbala forest and were shifted in an ambulance to a police installation in Handwara.

Sources said the exhumation was done in the presence of senior civil and police officials.

The exhumation happened on a day when the J & K government ordered a magisterial probe into the Hyderpora shooting on Monday night. On Tuesday police had said that four persons, a Pakistani terrorist and his local associate Mohammad Amir, along with Altaf Bhat and Mudassir Gul — were killed in the operation. Police had claimed that Gul was a militant associate. At least three families have contested the police claim saying they were innocent civilians.

The four bodies were buried at Handwara, some 100 km from Srinagar.

The exhumation came amid rising tension in Kashmir as families of the two civilians killed in the Hyderpora, lawyers and political parties hit the streets demanding justice for the victims and the return of their bodies.

Meanwhile, the District Magistrate, Srinagar ordered magisterial inquiry into the encounter at Hyderpora, Srinagar.

An order in this regard has been issued by the District Magistrate, Srinagar here vide No. DMS/Jud/Inquiry/2838-2845/2021 dated 18 November, 2021.

The Additional District Magistrate, Srinagar, Khurshid Ahmad Shah has been nominated as the Inquiry Officer for conducting enquiry into the matter so as to ascertain the facts and circumstances related to the incident and the cause of death.

Meanwhile, the general public/ person in knowledge of the incident and is willing to record his/ her statement or wants to give any other information about the incident, is being asked that he/ she may attend the office of the Additional District Magistrate, Srinagar in the office complex of Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar Amar Niwas Complex, Tankipora, Srinagar for recording the statements in this matter within 10 days from the date of issuance of this notice from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM during working days, so that the enquiry in the said case is completed.

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