Islamabad: The Legal Forum for Kashmir (LFK) launched a comprehensive dossier on Zia Mustafa’s extrajudicial execution in a staged encounter at Poonch, Indian-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK).
According to a statement issued in this regard, the dossier exposes the lies of Indian occupying forces related to Zia’s involvement in militancy.
Per the dossier, Zia Mustafa, 15, from Rawalakot IOJK inadvertently crossed the LoC on January 13, 2003, and was arrested by the Indian-occupying forces.
The family members of Zia lodged a missing report with the concerned police station, but the army and IOJK police, led by the then director-general A K Suri, issued a joint press conference on April 11, 2003, in which they projected and presented Zia as a foreign militant, involved in the “so-called terror incident,” the dossier said.
The dossier reported that Zia was a minor when he crossed the border unknowingly and was later falsely implicated in militancy by the Indian forces and agencies.
According to the statement, the report further states that the trial court in Shopian, Kashmir framed charges against Zia under sections 302, 120b, 450, 395, of IPC; 7/27 PACT; 2/3 IMCO-. “However, the state out of prosecution witnesses failed to produce a single evidence against Zia,” it said.
Accordingly, the court closed the prosecution evidence.
The state filed a criminal appeal before the IOJK high court Srinagar wing, which was “meritless and accordingly dismissed by the court.” The state again approached the supreme court of India and filed a criminal appeal 3989/2018 with the condonation of delay application which is still pending.
Zia’s lawyer, Mubashir Gattoo, while talking to local media said: “Zia, an undertrial for 17 years, was facing a case before session’s court, but there was no evidence for his conviction”.
“The dossier highlights the extra-judicial execution of an undertrial who was in judicial custody when the joint counter-insurgent group including the Indian army without following the mandate of law took Zia outside the jail and killed him in a staged encounter,” the statement read.
Moreover, the dossier also revealed the important documents showing Zia a minor boy at the date of his arrest, moreover, the prisoners’ list exchanged by the foreign offices listed Zia as an undertrial prisoner.
The dossier also highlights the 111 fake encounters and the alleged perpetrators involved in these war crimes.
Meanwhile, LFK held a roundtable debate inviting law experts and key stakeholders on the universal jurisdiction case submitted before the metropolitan war crime unit in the UK. The experts hailed the efforts of the Stoke White Investigation unit for filing a suit against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and six other Indian officials responsible for torture and extra-judicial killing of the duo.
Head of Stoke White Hakan Camus hoped the request to British police seeking the arrest of Indian officials will be followed by other legal actions also focusing on Kashmir.
