Jammu Kashmir Police describe tweets by former J&K Chief Minister on ongoing investigations as “unfortunate”
Jammu: PDP chief and former chief minister of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State, Mehbooba Mufti, on Wednesday took to social media alleging that party’s youth leader Waheed ur Rehman Para is being “persecuted and tortured’’ to confess false charges.
“Waheed is being persecuted & tortured to admit the false allegations’’. “Since an admission didn’t happen, he is being kept under inhuman conditions,’’ she wrote on her Twitter handle putting in the dock Jammu and Kashmir Police, which is in the forefront of fighting terror and the organization which once used to report to her as Chief Minister and Home Minister of the erstwhile State.
“This investigation has been fraudulent & politically motivated from day one,’’ she further said in a series of tweets, adding “J&K CID has joined the list of Central agencies that work to terrorise Kashmiris & falsely implicate them’’. “After failing to substantiate charges against PDP’s Waheed Para, CID replaced the SIT head because he refused to be an accomplice in framing invented charges,’’ she added.
Para was arrested in an alleged terror fund a few days after he filed his nomination papers for District Development Council polls from Pulwama. He got elected while in custody. Nearly one and a half month after remaining in custody, he was later granted bail by the Special Judge for NIA cases, but he was re-arrested by CID wing of Jammu and Kashmir Police. The NIA also has filed an appeal in the High Court challenging grant of bail to him by the trial court.
The tweets from former CM against Criminal Investigation Department evoked strong reaction from UT Police who described these as “unfortunate’’ for two reasons – for being factually incorrect and making CID officers vulnerable to increased threats and enhanced risks. “It is also fraught with the risks of adversely influencing the witnesses and the course of investigation,’’ a police spokesperson here said, adding “it is factually incorrect that an under investigation person was tortured’’.
Pointing out that CID investigations are done professionally and as per law, he said that each and every arrested person is presented before competent court periodically as per law. “Every arrested suspect has access to health care and doctors,’’ spokesperson said, adding that “it is neither proper nor lawful to discuss and pass verdict like remarks in the public domain about ongoing complex investigations’’.
“CID is answerable to courts on all aspects including whether amenities and rights available to a person under custodial investigation and his legal obilitations to cooperated in the investigations are being complied,’’ spokesperson said.