Supreme Court orders stay on Shopian firing case investigation

New Delhi, March 05 (KNB): Amid fresh civilian killing in Shopian on 04 March 2018, the Supreme Court of India Monday restrained the Jammu and Kashmir government from initiating any investigation against Major Aditya Kumar till April 24, who was named in the FIR filed in the Shopian firing case dated 27 January 2018.
During the hearing, the Mehbooba Mufti government stated that Major Aditya’s name had not been mentioned in any FIR pertaining to the killing of civilians in army fire on January 27.



According to reports, the column in the FIR where the accused is named was left blank but Major Aditya’s name was mentioned as the commanding officer in subsequent paragraphs.
The Supreme Court then inquired if Major Aditya could be roped in at a later stage, to which Shekhar Naphade, the attorney appearing for the J-K government replied that it would depend on the investigation.
Major Aditya and other soldiers of 10 Garhwal Rifles were accused of opening fire and fatally injuring two civilians when a stone-pelting mob attacked an army convoy near Ganowpora village in Kashmir’s Shopian.
The FIR was registered against personnel of 10 Garhwal Rifles, including Major Aditya Kumar, under Sections 302 (punishment for murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the Ranbir Penal Code.
Soon after, Major Aditya’s father Lt Col Karamveer Singh moved the Supreme Court seeking quashing of the FIR against his son.
In his plea before the apex court, Singh had argued that the filing of the FIR against his son will hurt the Army’s morale in fighting terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. (KNB)