Srinagar, Aug 21: A court in Jammu and Kashmir’s Bandipora district has sentenced a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist to life imprisonment, 32 years after he killed a civilian in the district on December 7, 1993.
The Additional District &Sessions Judge Bandipora, Susheel Singh, sentenced a Hizbul terrorist, Abdul Wahid Mir, to life imprisonment for the murder of a carpet weaver, Mohammad Shafi Hajam, in Onagam village of Bandipora district on December 7.
The case had initially been closed as “untraced” by the police in 1994, but was reopened in 2004 after persistent efforts by the victim’s family. The court sentenced Mir to life imprisonment under Section 302 RPC, three years rigorous imprisonment under Section 201 RPC, and seven years rigorous imprisonment under Section 7/27 Arms Act. All sentences will run concurrently.
The Jammu and Kashmir Legal Services Authority has been directed to provide Rs one lakh compensation to Hajam’s parents under the 2013 Victim Compensation scheme. According to the prosecution, on the morning of the incident, Abdul Wahid Mir and another Hizbul Mujahideen militant, Ali Mohammad Khawja alias Khan, entered Hajam’s home. They demanded his scooter and forced him to accompany them.
Eyewitnesses, including Hajam’s brothers, testified that Mir took the victim to a nearby graveyard where he shot him point-blank in the forehead. Villagers intervened when Mir attempted to set the body on fire with kerosene. Witnesses further stated that the militants terrorised the locality, issuing threats that anyone supporting Hajam’s family would face the same fate.
For weeks, the family lived in fear, unable to mourn openly as posters circulated branding Hajam an “informer”. The crime was initially reported by a village chowkidar, but investigations failed to yield results, leading to the closure of the case in March 1994.
A decade later, the victim’s family gathered the courage to name the perpetrators, prompting police to reopen the case and record fresh statements. Mir, who had admitted to his past involvement in militancy but claimed to have surrendered, faced trial for years.
Multiple family members testified against him, providing harrowing details of the killing. In his order, Judge Singh said the crime was “heinous and shook the conscience of society.” However, considering Mir’s age — 55 years — and prolonged incarceration, the court ruled out the death penalty.
He is currently lodged in Central Jail Agra, where the court has directed his continued confinement, subject to confirmation of the sentence by the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.
Meanwhile, co-accused Ali Mohammad Khawja was acquitted of all charges. The court observed that the prosecution failed to prove his involvement beyond a reasonable doubt, with no substantive evidence establishing his participation in the murder.
The court also acknowledged the role of the Additional Advocate General and the Legal Aid Defence Counsel in assisting proceedings, noting that their support was crucial in bringing the decades-old case to a conclusion.
J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha has ordered that family members of those killed by terrorists during the last 35 years, who are still waiting for justice, must come forward without any fear and lodge FIRs with the police to get justice.
The L-G is also providing jobs to next of kin of those killed by terrorists, but whose cases for compassionate appointments in government jobs were not followed and processed during the last 35 years.
IANS