The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested six policemen from Jammu and Kashmir, including two senior officers, for their alleged involvement in the brutal custodial torture of a police constable. The arrests were made following strict directions from the Supreme Court (SC).
According to officials, the arrested personnels include Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dy SP) Aijaz Ahmad Naiko and Sub-Inspector (SI) Riyaz Ahmad, along with four other policemen posted at the Joint Interrogation Centre (JIC) in Kupwara. Two civilians have also been named in connection with the case.
This brutal case came to light after the Supreme Court, on July 21, ordered the CBI to register an FIR, SC said that the torture was “brutal and inhuman.” The court also directed the J&K administration to pay the victim, Constable Khursheed, a compensation of ₹50 lakh.
A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta said that the torture on the constable was shocking and a clear violation of his fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Constitution.
“The complete mutilation of his genitalia, the use of pepper and electric shocks, and the fractures across his body are grave reminders of the inhuman torture he was subjected to,” the judges remarked.
To probe the case thoroughly, the CBI has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by a Superintendent of Police-level officer.
Medical records from Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Srinagar has confirmed that the constable had suffered serious injuries, including the removal of both testicles, multiple fractures, and burns caused by torture methods.
The victim’s wife, in her complaint, said her husband was detained on February 20, 2023 and was kept at the JIC Kupwara for six days.
During this period, she alleged that he was subjected to barbaric torture, including beatings, insertion of rods, and red pepper in his private parts, as well as electric shocks. “They left him half-dead, but the outcry of local residents forced them to take him to the hospital,” she said.
She further alleged that senior officers refused to intervene in the case and allowed the torture to continue. “No family member was allowed to meet him for six days. The cruelty he faced is beyond imagination,” she added.