NEW YORK:
India has not taken any member of its security forces in India-held Kashmir to court for human rights violations, according to a major watchdog’s report.
The report was released on Wednesday by the Amnesty International, claiming that New Delhi had denied permission to prosecute under section 7 of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in every case brought against members of the army or paramilitary forces.
The report quoted Mohammad Amin Magray, uncle of 17-year-old Javaid Ahmad Magray who was killed in April 2003 by the troops, as having said: “If the [Indian] army knew they would be charged, and will have to go to court and be prosecuted, they will think ten times before they pull their triggers on an innocent.”
“India has martyred one lakh (100,000) people in Kashmir. More than 8,000 disappeared (while) in the custody of army and state police. No one has returned so far.