New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a case against six Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel over allegations of subjecting a fellow constable to brutal custodial torture two years ago, PTI reported.
Acting on the directions of the Supreme Court, the CBI has named Deputy Superintendent of Police Aijaz Ahmad Naiko and five others in its FIR. At the time, all were posted at the Joint Interrogation Centre (JIC) in Kupwara.
Besides Naiko, the FIR includes Sub-Inspector Riyaz Ahmad and four other police personnel—Jahangir Ahmad, Imtiyaz Ahmad, Mohammad Younis, and Shakir Ahmad—accused of torturing Constable Khursheed Ahmad Chohan over a six-day period.
According to the complaint filed by Khursheed’s wife, now part of the FIR, he was posted in Baramulla and was asked via a signal communication to report to the Kupwara SSP on February 17, 2023, purportedly in connection with a narcotics probe. Upon arrival, he was handed over to the JIC, where he was allegedly tortured using iron rods, wooden sticks, and electric shocks.
The complaint stated that the torture continued for six days and included horrific acts, such as mutilation of his private parts and the insertion of iron rods and red pepper into his rectum. She alleged that despite being aware of the events, the then SSP of Kupwara remained silent. However, the SSP has not been named as an accused in the CBI’s FIR, the PTI reported.
Khursheed later approached the Supreme Court after the Jammu and Kashmir High Court dismissed his request for a CBI probe. The apex court strongly criticised the high court for failing to uphold the fundamental rights of the victim and expressed deep concern over the influence the accused, being police officials, could exert.
The top court ordered the transfer of the case to the CBI and directed that Khursheed be paid Rs 50 lakh as compensation. This amount will be recovered from those found guilty following the agency’s investigation. It also instructed that departmental proceedings be initiated against them after the probe.
The Supreme Court dismissed the JK administration’s claim that the injuries were due to a suicide attempt. The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, highlighted that Khursheed was admitted to SKIMS Hospital on February 26, 2023, with severe injuries, including castration, and that his severed genitalia had been brought to the hospital in a plastic bag by a sub-inspector.
Calling it one of the most barbaric cases of custodial violence, the court said the medical evidence clearly debunked the suicide theory. It ruled that the timeline presented by the authorities did not add up — Khursheed had been summoned for questioning on February 17 without any specific FIR, yet the case (FIR 17/2023) against him was only registered on February 23, days after he was already in custody.
The court also cited injuries consistent with torture techniques like falanga — beating the soles of the feet — and noted multiple injuries across his body, particularly to the genitals, buttocks, and rectum. Medical experts confirmed such injuries could not be self-inflicted without resulting in fatal hemorrhage or unconsciousness, the news agency reported.
The court further ordered the CBI to investigate the broader functioning of the Joint Interrogation Centre in Kupwara. This includes examining CCTV footage, questioning all personnel present during the time of Khursheed’s detention, conducting forensic inspections of the premises, and reviewing all procedures related to the interrogation and detention of suspects.
