3 youth freed after years of illegal imprisonment in CRPF attack case
Srinagar: In a stark reminder of India’s arbitrary justice system in Indian illegally occupied Kashmir, a TADA-designated court in Srinagar has acquitted three youth in the 2020 Taingan CRPF attack case, after years of imprisonment, citing lack of credible evidence.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the Additional Sessions Judge (TADA/POTA), Srinagar, Manjeet Rai, delivered the judgment in a case filed at Police Station Nowgam. The case involved a CRPF road-opening patrol attack near Taingan on October 5, 2020. The accused—Faisal Ahmad Ganaie of Shankerpora, Waseem Ahmad Ganaie of Chattergam, and Shakir Ahmad Dar of Kakapora—were charged under IPC, Arms Act, and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act on the charge of being overground workers.
The court noted that none of the CRPF personnel identified the accused, and the prosecution relied solely on circumstantial evidence, including weak disclosure statements and joint pointing-out memos. Serious investigative lapses, such as absence of independent witnesses, missing CCTV and ballistic reports, and failure to link recovered weapons to the crime, were also flagged.
Observers highlighted how India’s pliant judiciary has become complicit in the repression of Kashmiris. They said, for years, innocent Kashmiris are jailed without trial under black laws. The judiciary routinely fails to hold Indian forces accountable, while youth are branded ‘terrorists’ on fabricated charges, fueling alienation and resentment.
