Ganderbal encounter sparks row; CM Omar, Kashmir leaders demand transparent probe

A day after the Army killed a “terrorist” in an operation in Kashmir’s Ganderbal, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday demanded a transparent probe into the claim after the family of the deceased insisted that he was innocent.

Omar wrote on X: “I believe the claim of the family should not be dismissed out of hand. At the very least this encounter needs a transparent & time bound probe with the facts made public. Any attempt to obfuscate or delay the announcement of a probe will only damage credibility & that is not in anyone’s interest”.
The Kashmir-based Indian Army’s Chinar Corps yesterday said that it killed one terrorist in ‘Operation Arhama’ in Ganderbal.

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“During the night of 31 Mar 26, the cordon was tactically reorganised amidst the intermittent firing underway. Own troops effectively retaliated with a calibrated response resulting in one terrorist eliminated,” the Army posted on X.
Ruling National Conference MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi has also demanded a “time bound, independent probe”
Ruhullah wrote on X; “The family of Rashid Ahmad Mughal, killed in the Ganderbal encounter, says he was an innocent civilian with zero links to militancy. His own clothes were changed. The Army refuses to reveal his identity”.

“These are gravely serious allegations. Silence from J&K Police is unacceptable. We demand a time-bound, independent probe”, he wrote.

Mehbooba Mufti, president of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), termed the allegations “deeply disturbing.” She claimed “the 29 year old Rashid Mughal who was running an NGO. The Army initially claimed he was a foreign militant, then said he was a local militant. His body was buried in Baramulla”, Mehbooba told reporters in Srinagar, adding that “this is what is happening to youth here”.

The controversy has broken out after Ajaz Ahmad, brother of the slain Rashid Ahmad Mughal, from the Chountwaliwar area of Ganderbal, said that he left his home on Tuesday but didn’t return.

He claimed that the man killed in the encounter was not involved in militancy. He recounted that Rashid left home on Tuesday morning and never returned, only to be identified later by police. The family alleged his clothes were changed and insisted he was innocent, demanding a full investigation.