Srinagar: The J&K administration ordered a magisterial probe on Thursday (February 6) into the death of a youth from Kathua district of Jammu who committed suicide allegedly after facing torture in police custody.
An official spokesperson said that Kathua deputy commissioner Rakesh Minhas has ordered Lohai Malhar tehsildar Anil Kumar to conduct an enquiry within five days into the death of Makhandin, a Gujjar resident of Billawar who committed suicide allegedly after being tortured in custody.
Jammu and Kashmir police has also ordered a departmental enquiry headed by deputy inspector general of police (Kathua-Samba-Jammu range) Shiv Kumar into the incident, the spokesperson said, adding that the inquiry will be completed “at the earliest” without specifying any deadline.
The alleged custodial killing had sparked a flurry of condemnations from the civil society and the Opposition in Jammu and Kashmir with former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti leading the call for justice for the tribal youth, who ended his life by allegedly consuming some insecticide at his home.
In a post on X, Mufti has claimed that Makhandin was “subjected to brutal thrashing and torture” and “forced into a confession” which compelled him to take his own life.
“The area has been sealed off, and internet services have been cut, leading to widespread panic. There’s an ongoing crackdown, with more individuals being picked up. This incident appears to follow a troubling pattern of targeting innocent youths on fabricated charges,” she said, urging the director general of J&K police to order a probe.
Shocking news from Kathua: Makhan Din, aged 25 from Perody, Billawar, was detained by the SHO of Billawar on false charges of being an Over Ground Worker (OGW). He was reportedly subjected to brutal thrashing and torture, forced into a confession, and tragically found dead today.…
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) February 6, 2025
Family sources said that Makhandin was detained by Kathua police earlier this week, reportedly to probe his alleged involvement in some recent militancy-related incidents in Kathua and its adjoining districts.
In a video recorded before his death on Wednesday evening, Makhandin is seen extending Islamic greetings while holding a copy of the holy Quran on his head and swearing that he has not seen Swar Din alias Swaru Gujjar, an active militant who is believed to be involved in a number of terror attacks in Jammu region.
Police had released him from detention on Wednesday evening and asked him to bring the phone with which he was allegedly in contact with the militants. It is not known whether any police officials were sent along with him to make the recovery.
“I am lying to the police that I was in contact with militants using a different phone. I was getting beaten up badly and I had to cook up a story to stop the beating. Now they have asked me to fetch the phone but where will I get it from? I lied only to stop the beatings” he says in the video.
He added: “When I was small, maybe I did but since I got to know who is who, I have not seen any militant. I have promised to Shafi bhai that I will never betray the police. I have kept my promise.”
Police said that Makhandin was nephew of Swaru Gujjar who is believed to be in contact with a group of militants that allegedly ambushed an army convoy in Badnota area in July last year in which five Army soldiers, including a junior commissioner officer, were killed.
“It is the same group which led to the killing and martyrdom of HC Bashir in Kohag Operation. Makhan had a number of suspicious contacts in Pakistan and other foreign countries. There was no custodial torture or injury. He was questioned and then got exposed, went home and committed suicide,” the spokesperson said, terming Mufti’s allegations that internet had been shut as “baseless and misleading”.
The incident took place less than two years after 50-year-old Mukhtar Hussain Shah, a resident of Nar village in Poonch, who was called for questioning in a militant attack by police, died allegedly after consuming poison on April 27, 2023.
Shah had also recorded a nine minute 45 seconds video before his alleged suicide.
“I am not under any pressure from the army, police or any villager. I am taking my life, which is forbidden by my religion, because of the torture faced by my family and neighbours… I don’t have knowledge of anything,” Shah said in the video, holding a small polythene bag in his hands which contained a bottle of insecticide.
Meanwhile, J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah said he has taken up the issue of two civilian deaths in Baramulla and Kathua – one was allegedly killed in firing by the army and another reportedly died in police custody – in the past 24 hours with the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Union government.
Omar said that the two “highly unfortunate” incidents “should not have happened”.
“J&K will never be completely normalised and free of terror without the cooperation of & partnership with the local population. Incidents like these risk alienating the very people who we need to carry with us on the road to complete normalcy. I have taken up these incidents with the Union government & insisted that both incidents are inquired into in a time bound, transparent manner. The government in J&K will also order its own inquiries,” he said in a post on X.
I have seen the reports of excessive use of force & harassment of Makhan Din in police custody in Billawar leading to his suicide and the death of Waseem Ahmed Malla, shot by the army under circumstances that are not entirely clear. Both these incidents are highly unfortunate and…
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) February 6, 2025
