STATE TIMES NeWS
JAMMU: Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court on Saturday allowed a revision petition of J&K Police in 2003 Nadimarg 24 Kashmiri Pandit massacre case, and ordered trial court to ensure expeditious proceedings to conclude the matter at the earliest.
Police has filed criminal revision petition seeking setting-aside of the order dated 09.02.2011, passed by the court of the learned Principal Sessions Judge, Shopian (for short “court below”) in a case-FIR No.24/2003 registered under sections 302, 450, 395, 120-B, 307, 326, 427 of RPC, 7/27 of Arms Act & 30 of P.Act, titled State through Police Station Zainapora vs. Zia Mustafa Alias Ubaz Alias Abdullah Umar and others, whereby court below has application of the petitioner for recording the statement of witnesses on commission has been dismissed and the evidence of the prosecution has been closed.
It is stated in this revision petition that a case FIR no.24/2003 was registered in police station Zainapora in connection with brutal killing of 24 individuals at Village Nadimarg in the year 2003 and all the assassinated persons were belonging to the minority community and that the brutal killings of the minority community members resulted in mass migration of the remaining people of the minority community from the village and are reported to be living at Purkhoo Camp, Muthi Camp and Mishriwala Jammu. It is also submitted that after completing the investigation in the case, the concerned police filed a challan before the trial court at Pulwama wherefrom the case was committed to the court of Sessions at Pulwama and as many as 38 witnesses were cited in the calendar of witnesses and after creation of Shopian District, the case was transferred to the court below for further trial. Justice Vinod Chatterji Koul after hearing both the sides observed that counsel for the petitioner stated that the court below has not appreciated the difficulty of the prosecution in procuring the presence of the witnesses and that endeavour of the court below in a case of heinous nature like one on hand should be to examine all the witnesses on commission so as to unveil the truth.
Justice Vinod Chatterji Koul further observed that legal position laid down by the Supreme Court, this Court is of the view that the court below has dismissed the application of the prosecution-State for examining the witness on commission on the irrelevant consideration while overlooking the material and relevant aspects of the case. The said application of the prosecution for recording statement of witnesses on commission deserved to be allowed.
With these observations, High Court allowed the revision petition and order dated 09.02.2011, passed by the court below is set-aside, and the application for issuance of commission for examination of witnesses moved by the prosecution-State/petitioner is allowed. The court below shall now take all the necessary measures for ensuring the examination of the witnesses concerned by issuing commission and/or recording their statement videoconferencing and shall ensure expeditious proceedings so as to conclude the matter at the earliest.