Reported by Umer Maqbool in Greaterkashmir.com on 07 June 2012
No exact info on foreign militants Police Lastupdate:- Thu, 7 Jun 2012 18:30:00 GMT GreaterKashmir.com

Srinagar, June 6: Jammu & Kashmir Police have revealed that “it might not have the names and identification of foreign militants killed in the state.”

“1st Appellate Authority (DIG-Adm), Police Headquarters, and Public Information Officer (IG Office-CID) have submitted before this Commission that the authorities might not have the names and identification of killed foreign militants,” an order passed by Chief Information Commissioner GR. Sufi on Wednesday, reads.

While conceding the argument of police over identification of foreign militants, the CIC directed the police to disclose “whatever information is available in the record within 45 days over their names and nationality killed in the state.”

An applicant had filed an application under Right to Information Act-2009 seeking information on the unmarked graves and issues related to it.

While the Public Information Officer of IGP (CID office) had “refused” to disclose information “for security reasons”, the First Appellate Authority (FAA) DIG (Adm), Police Headquarters, provided half of the information to the applicant. Not satisfied with the reply of police, the information seeker knocked the doors of the Commission.

In Wednesday’s order, the CIC directed police “to disclose information over FIRs lodged in different police stations pertaining to those buried in unmarked graves in the Valley.”

“Information with regard to FIR numbers and the name of police station where FIRs have been registered pertaining to the death of those buried in unmarked graves for districts other than North Kashmir has not been given. The information with regard to remaining districts has to be collected from other districts and be provided to the appellant. This may be done within 45 days from the date of receipt of this order,” the CIC judgment read.

Maintaining that the information provided to the appellant during the 1st appeal proceedings is incomplete, the CIC directed the FAA to disclose all information over unmarked graves and graveyards in all 22 districts of the state.

The CIC also asked police to provide information about the “district-wise details of unmarked graves where dead bodies were initially buried as foreign or unclaimed militants but later were identified as local residents.”

During a hearing, the police had pleaded that the information on the subject can be had from the concerned district PIOs. However the applicant contested their claim saying that the “1st appellate authority who adjudicated appeal and ordered for disclosure of information should have advised the PIOs of districts at that time to provide the information.”

The CIC also asked police to divulge information “of all the exhumations which took place in the unmarked graves and also how many persons, after exhumations, have turned out to be local residents (both civilians and militants).”