Trial in BSF court debatable: CJM

Trial in BSF court debatable: CJM
Nishwan Rasool
Srinagar, May 5: A local court here held that the BSF’s plea to try two of its men, Commandant RK Birdi and Constable Lakhwinder Kumar accused of killing Nishat teenager Zahid Farooq, was debatable. The court also extended the duo’s judicial remand till May 19.

“Whether in the application filed by Border Security Force for trial of the accused by BSF court, the accused have or have no right to oppose or to support the application is debatable, but so far application filed for reinvestigation and lodging of Counter FIR is concerned, the accused require services of the counsel,” Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar, Mohammad Ibrahim Wani said today as no counsel was available for the accused.

“The accused are therefore granted sometime to inform the court of their own or need the assistance of this court for engaging the services of the counsel.”

Earlier, the accused informed the court that at present they don’t require the services of the counsel. However the court held that it was necessary that they must have a counsel, if the application filed by them was to be taken up for argument.

On April 6, the BSF through Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Brig (Retd) R M Painuly, had moved an application before the CJM, seeking stay in the civil proceedings and transfer of case to the BSF court under section 80 of BSF Act of 1989.

The State government on April 8 while objecting the bid by the forces agency had sought two weeks to file the objections.
In its 3-page charge-sheet the SIT charged the BSF personnel under Section 302 of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC), an offence punished with death, or imprisonment for life and fine.

The duo was also charged under Section 201 (destroying or tampering with the evidence) and Section 109 (abetment of offence). There are 86 witnesses.

The two BSF personnel are accused of killing 17-year-old Zahid Farooq in an unprovoked firing near his residence in Nishat on February 5 last.

On 30 March last, the accused sought a counter FIR akin to one in Wamiq Farooq, where the police filed FIR against the slain teen from Rainwari who was killed in teargas shelling by police.

Meanwhile, the CJM extended the judicial remand of the accused till May 19 and directed the superintendent of the central jail to produce the accused in the court on the date.