J&K encounter controversy: Killed businessmen were used as human shields, claims family

The family members of two businessmen killed during an encounter in Hyderpora area of Srinagar on Monday night claimed that the victims were civilians allegedly used as "human shields and killed in cold blood" and demanded that their bodies be returned.
The police said the duo was killed in crossfire during the operation in which two militants were killed. The police took the bodies to a graveyard in Handwara area in north Kashmir, over 70 km from their residences in Srinagar, for burial stating that handing over bodies to the families would have triggered a law and order situation.

The J&K police also initiated a probe into the circumstances of the operation, headed by a DIG-rank official, at the alleged hideout of the militants. The officials claimed that one of the civilians, Dr Mudasir Gul, who ran a construction business office as a tenant on the first floor of this building, was an associate of the militants and provided logistical support to them. He is survived by his wife and two children. The other civilian killed during the operation was identified as Altaf Ahmad Bhat, in his mid 40s, who owned the building where the encounter took place and ran a hardware store on its ground floor. He is survived by his wife and three children.

"The police arrived at around 4:45pm and searched the building. After some time the Army arrived and gathered all the shopkeepers and others at a motorcycle showroom, around 100 meters from the spot," said an eyewitness. Then the eyewitness informed that Altaf and Mudasir were picked up from the gathering and asked to accompany them inside the building.

"Later we heard a message blaring from communication devices asking us to not panic if we hear some loud gunshots. And then Altaf and Mudasir never returned till we were asked to go home around midnight," another eyewitness, present in the gathering said.

"You killed my innocent uncle in a cold blooded murder in Hyderpora. You used him as a human shield and now saying he was an overground worker. Return us his body," Saima Bhat, niece of Altaf tweeted. His teenage daughter alleged, "When I asked the policemen why my father was killed, they laughed at me shamelessly," she said.

The family members of Gul protested at the press enclave in Srinagar, demanding the return of the body, reiterating that he was a civilian, who had returned to Kashmir on Sunday. "He ran an office and was not a militant. He had returned home a day before and his children were happy on his return. We need an answer, why was he killed," they asked.

Kashmir IGP Vijay Kumar said that two civilians were killed in the crossfire, when they were brought into the building during a search operation and the militants didn't open the door and instead opened fire.