Bomai Killings Anniversary

Sopur, Feb 20: On the first anniversary of the killing of two youth by Army in Bomai here, a shutdown is being observed on Sunday even as police has failed to make any arrests.
 The locals are protesting against the killings in unprovoked firing by personnel of Army’s 22 Rashtriya Rifles.
 Locals are exasperated as no action has been initiated against the troopers who fired upon the youth—Muhammad Amin Tantray and Javaid Ahmad Dar.
 The Bomai Coordination Committee, formed to lead the agitation, has pasted posters across the village wherein tributes have been paid to the slain youth and the government has been accused of failure to bring the culprits to book.
 It was on February 21, when an Army convoy of 22 Rashtriya Rifles was passing through Bomai. The convoy, according to the eyewitnesses, stopped near a bund and without any provocation opened indiscriminate fire on a group of youth. Two youth died on the spot.
 The incident had triggered massive demonstrations. Chief Minister had ordered magisterial inquiry while Army initiated a court of inquiry.
 Unlike what has been a norm in Kashmir, the district magistrate had named an Army officer and two troopers as guilty and recommended action against them. Army’s court of inquiry also found that its men were involved in the killings.
 Pertinently, police started investigation and registered an FIR 73/09 under section 302 RPC. Even as one year has passed, police hasn’t presented the charge sheet, let alone arrest any trooper.
 Interestingly, police has presented charge sheet against 65 persons who had staged protests against the killings.
 Parents of Muhammad Amin Tantray told Greater Kashmir that they were waiting for justice. “We don’t want any compensation, we want killers to be punished.”
 President of the Bomai Coordination Committee, Hakim-ul-Rehman, said that people had put two demands that the army camp in the area should be shifted and that killers should be punished.
 “While the camp has been shifted, the killers were not punished,” he said, adding that Sunday strike is to pay tributes to the youth and to impress upon the government to fulfill the promises of punishing the troopers.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 20 Feb 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 21 Feb 2010 00:00:00 IST