Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Oct 28: Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) has attached a team with the Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) to expedite probe in August 1998 Sailan massacre at Surankote in Poonch district in which 19 civilians of three families were reportedly massacred by the militants.
The CBI has received the record from police and civil administration and was now awaiting the documents from Northern Command pertaining to deployment of officers in Surankote at the time of massacre to record their statements regarding the massacre.
Official sources told the Excelsior that JKP has deputed a four members police team to assist the CBI in investigations of Sailan massacre, which was executed on intervening night of August 3 and 4, 1998. The team comprised Sarveshwar Singh and Rattan Singh, both Sub Inspectors, Balbir Singh and Rajesh Kumar, both Head Constables.
The police officers would work with CBI’s Investigating Officer Ashok Kalra and assist him in recording statements, collecting documents and other possible evidences in the case.
Sources said the CBI would record the statement of DIG North Kashmir JP Singh, then posted as SSP Poonch and then SP (Operations) Surankote Sewak Singh, who is presently on bail after being awarded life imprisonment in murder case of a Sub Inspector.
Though the Northern Command was yet to submit its record to the CBI regarding deployment of the officers in Poonch district particularly Surankote at the time of incident, the CBI has learnt that 9 Para was posted in Surankote at that time.
Sources said the CBI would like to record statements of Army officers posted in Surankote at that time to ascertain their view point on the killings. The Army officers would be called for questioning only when the Northern Command officially made available the record to the CBI including name of the unit and officers and their present place of posting.
The CBI team was shuttling between Surankote and New Delhi while the JKP team assisting the investigating agency was also performing the task assigned to it by the CBI, sources said.
The CBI had recently taken over investigations of the case more than 25 years after the killings on the directions of court.
Nineteen civilians from majority community including 13 women and six men belonging to three families of majority community were killed in the house of one Hassan Mohammad Sheikh on the night of August 3 and 4 in 1998 and the killings were initially attributed to the militants. However, later some local people of the areas had expressed doubts over the killings and demanded inquiry.
Security forces, police and other agencies held the view that the militants had executed the killings by blaming some members of the families as informers of security forces.
The CBI has written to the Northern Command Headquarters seeking entire record including name of the Army Unit, their officers and jawans, who were posted in Surankote and Poonch at the time of civilian killings. The Army has also been urged to provide other relevant material before it pertaining to the killings.
The CBI team has already spoken to present police officers in Poonch and Surankote and got details available with them about the incident.
The CBI team was in the process of recording the statements of relatives, family members and neighbours of the victims to ascertain their version of the killings.
Very few militants were now left in Surankote, which used to be the hub of militancy in 1998 when the killings had taken place.
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