Srinagar, July 2: Judicial Magistrate, MA Al-Nasir working with the state High Court had a narrow escape Thursday evening when paramilitary CRPF men attacked his car with lathis and gun butts near his Chanapora residence on the City outskirts. A PSO, driving the car, was wounded in the attack. The police has declined to register FIR against the security forces.

THE ATTACK
The incident occurred at around 8:30 PM when the Magistrate was going home. The moment his private car, a black Alto reached Omer Colony, Chanapora, a group of around 50 CRPF men went berserk.
“Around 50 yards prior to my residence, they (CRPF men) pounced on my vehicle. And without any provocation they started lathi-charging the vehicle,” the Magistrate told Greater Kashmir.
The PSO, Gulzar Ahmed, accompanying the Magistrate, had tried his lot by uttering: “Array Mein Bhi Police Wala Hun(Hey I am also a Policeman.)”
“But they didn’t listen to his pleas,” the Magistrate recaps adding that the very next moment the driver got some blows. Some of the paramilitary troopers also banged the front windscreen till it broke to tiny crystals.
Though wounded, the driver mustered courage for an escape out of the “clutches of the troopers”.
He pumped the accelerator making the vehicle zoom. In the hurriedly bid, the car hit a electric pole. The damaged vehicle could still move and the driver didn’t loose his cool till they managed the escape.
Al-Nasir says he was lucky because of being seated in the rare.
“It was a narrow escape because I was on the rare seat… Had we confronted, they (CRPF men) would have shoot us,” the Magistrate adds.

‘THIS IS NOT DONE CRPF’
The Magistrate says the CRPF act was an “attack on the civilian population adding the paramilitary had contradicted the very purpose of its presence.”
“Security forces going on rampage on civilian population. This is not done,” he says.
“They (CRPF) are here to assist police in maintaining law-and-order. But if this force goes berserk, the way they are doing it then they are undermining their own presence … A line has to be drawn,” Al-Nasir observes.

LOW PROFILE TRAVEL
Al-Nasir was traveling in his private car only to avoid being targeted in stone pelting. This, he learnt of experience, just last week when the official car of his wife, a Chief Judicial Magistrate was targeted in Shahr-e-Khaas during clashes between the rock pelting youth and the police.
“Despite being a woman, her car was targeted in protests. Since then we avoid traveling in the official car,” he added.
On Thursday morning the couple left their residence for the Courts in their private car with a PSO in civvies just to avoid any confrontation on way.
After dropping Al-Nasir at the High Court, her wife took the Alto along to lift him back on return from Ganderbal.
But in the evening, Al Nasir dropped his wife at his in-laws home at Wazir Bagh before proceeding ahead. On way, he was caught by the “troops on rampage spree.”

THE POLICE IRONY
The police has declined to register FIR against the CRPF, despite a complaint by the Magistrate who has sought an FIR vide section 427, 336 and 323 RPC.
“They (policemen) asked if I want to register the case to seek compensation from insurance company,” Al-Nasir says adding the cops offered to page the complaint for damages.
But Al-Nasir replied in negative saying: “I can afford repairs for the damage.”
When he argued the reluctance of Police Post Chanapora in registering the FIR, the cops replied the CRPF movement in the area “wasn’t within our knowledge.”
To this, the complainant argued: “It was a contingent of around 50 men. It can’t be without the knowledge of police.”
“Law has been violated. Why cant police register FIR?” he argues.
“They (CRPF) can’t be covered under the law because it was a case of unilateral force, not any collateral damage,” Al-Nasir pleads.
The concerned SHO says the matter is being looked into.
Meanwhile, the Judicial Magistrate has shot a complaint to the Registrar General, state High Court and SSP City Syed Ashiq Hussain Bukhari seeking registration of the FIR.

Lastupdate on : Fri, 2 Jul 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Fri, 2 Jul 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sat, 3 Jul 2010 00:00:00 IST