Bandipora, August 20 (KNS): In a landmark judgement, a local court on Tuesday awarded Life imprisonment to a Hizbul Mujahideen Terrorist for killing a civilian in Bandipora three decades ago in 1993.
Court of Additional Sessions Judge Bandipora Susheel Singh on Tuesday convicted Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Abdul Wahid Mir for the cold-blooded murder of 32-year-old carpet weaver Mohammad Shafi Hajam in Onagam village of Bandipora.
The killing, which took place on December 7, 1993, had been initially buried as “untraced” but was reopened after 11 years on the insistence of the victim’s family.
The court sentenced Mir to life imprisonment under Section 302 RPC, three years rigorous imprisonment under Section 201 RPC, and seven years rigorous imprisonment under Section 7/27 Arms Act. All sentences will run concurrently. The court also directed the J&K Legal Services Authority to release ?1 lakh compensation to the victim’s parents under the 2013 Victim Compensation Scheme.
According to prosecution witnesses, on the fateful morning, Terrorists Abdul Wahid Mir and Ali Mohammad Khawja alias Khan—both affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen—entered the home of the victim in Onagam Village. They demanded his scooter and insisted that he accompany them. Out of fear, the deceased complied.
Eyewitness accounts from the victim’s brothers narrated how Wahid Mir forcibly took Hajam to the nearby Martyrs’ Graveyard. There, Mir shot him in the forehead at point-blank range, his brain matter spilling onto the road.
Accused Wahid Mir took his brother along. “First, he rode the scooter and then shot his brother in the forehead, the bullet exited from the back of his head. They (eyewitnesses) saw it from a distance of 8 feet….,” eye witnesses testify in court.
Witnesses further testified that Wahid then tried to set the corpse on fire with kerosene, but villagers, including one Muzaffer Malik, intervened and stopped him.
Further narrating the brutal murder, witnesses said the terrorists then threatened villagers, warning that anyone helping the family would face the same fate. For forty days after the murder, the family lived in terror, unable to mourn, while threatening posters circulated branding the victim as an “informer”.
“The accused were intimidating and did not allow anyone to speak. They made announcements warning anyone providing food or other assistance to the deceased’s mourning family would face the same fate,” witnesses said.
The killing was originally reported by the local chowkidar, but despite investigations, no leads were found, and in March 1994, the case was closed as “not traced.”
In 2004, more than a decade later, the victim’s family—overcoming fear—approached police again.Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp ChannelThey named Abdul Wahid Mir and Ali Mohammad Khawja as the killers. The case was reopened by the then SDPO Bandipora, and statements of eyewitnesses were recorded afresh.
The charge sheet revealed that Mir had admitted his involvement in militancy, though he claimed to have surrendered. The co-accused, Khawja, remained absconding for years, with proceedings under Section 512 CrPC initiated against him.
After years of trial, during which multiple family members, including the victim’s father, brothers, and nephew, gave consistent and harrowing testimonies, the court finally held Mir guilty of murder, use of prohibited arms, and destruction of evidence.
In his sentencing order, Judge Susheel Singh observed that while the crime was “heinous and shook the conscience of society,” mitigating factors such as Mir’s age (55 years) and prolonged incarceration tilted the balance against awarding the death penalty.
After finding the terrorist involved in the brutal murder, the Court sentences him to “imprisonment for life” for an offence under section 302 RPC. For the offence under section 201 RPC, the convict was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years while for the offence under section 7/27 Arms Act, the convict was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for seven years. All the sentences shall run concurrently.
The convict is presently lodged in Central Jail Agra. The court directed the issue of a necessary warrant of committal to the Superintendent of the Agra jail for lodging the convict in jail to receive the sentence, subject to confirmation by the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
However, the court acquitted another accused, Ali Mohammad Khawja alias Khan, who was represented by advocate Shuaib Deewani, as the court observed that the prosecution failed to prove the charge under Section 392 RPC, for want of any substantive or reliable evidence.
The court observed that the evidence on record does not establish motive, prior meeting of minds, or any overt or covert act and the presence or participation of the second accused at the scene of the offence is also doubtful. It further observed that None of the eye-witnesses nor the Investigating Officer could directly implicate the second accused in the commission of the murder.
“…Consequently, the prosecution has failed to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Accordingly, Accused No. 2 is acquitted of all charges,” reads the judgment.
The court also directed ?1 lakh compensation to the victim's parents under the 2013 Victim Compensation Scheme. The court also appreciated AAP, and LADC for assisting the court and observed that without their assistance, it would not have been possible to conclude the matter. (KNS)