Grenade wipes out 3 of family at Maloora

Govt providing Rs 15 Lakh, job, plot and medical relief to survivors

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

MALOORA (Shalteng), Feb 14: Three young members of an impoverished family got killed and two more sustained critical injuries when an unexploded shell of a Mobile Grenade Launcher (MGL) went off at their single-room residence here last night. Senior officials and leaders of the ruling National Conference called on the ill-fated family head and told him that an amount of Rs 15 Lakh, one regular job and one plot of land, besides reimbursement of entire expenditure on treatment of two injured members of the family, was being sanctioned by the state government as relief.

Size of 45-year-old Mohammad Maqbool Bhat’s one-room tenement will be increasing soon to accommodate all but it is happening not before the family’s strength has reduced from seven to four. Devastation did befall the Bhats when an MGL shell exploded last night, killing three and leaving two more critically injured. Residents as well as officials maintained that Bhat’s children were trying to break the explosive object with an axe. It went off and extinguished three young lives.

Bhat’s 14-year-old son, Noor Mohammad, died on the spot and 9-year-old daughter, Bisma, at hospital. His 42-year-old wife Yasmeena, 16-year-old son, Mumtaz, and 4-year-old daughter, Muskan, kept battling for life at hospital. Muskan breathed her last in the morning today. Officials said that Yasmeena and her son Mumtaz were responding to the treatment. They said that Bhat was out of the home, alongwith his last issue, when the catastrophe occurred.

Officials were apprehensive of violent demonstrations as the shell was believed to have been dropped by Police and soldiers of Rashtriya Rifles 02 Bn who had killed three heavily armed militants here in a fierce gunbattle on October 21, 2010. Apprehensions became all the more serious as Malroo, a hamlet in Srinagar outskirts on the road to Sumbal and Bandipore, had a history of turning such incidents against Army. RR 02 Bn has its headquarters at Poultry Farm, Zainakote, in close vicity of Maloora as well as Divisional Headquarters of Kilo Force (Shariefabad).

In recent times, when unruly stone pelting crowds hit 55-year-old Ghulam Mohammad Guroo, who was returning to his home from Pampore in a Tata Sumo alongwith two of his brothers, at Bemina, and he later died at SKIMS, Soura, on September 9, 2010, demonstrations in this village of milk-sellers and farmers came out against Police and Army. Within the walls of all dwelling units, condemnation was clearly writ against the stone pelters and their mobilisers in separatist as well as some mainstream political parties. On the highway, same people performed against the “Indian troops” and “occupying state”.

By the time, three militants got killed in the gunbattle on October 21, Valley had transformed. Those provoking the residents over “custodial killing of three innocent persons” lost spirits when Sajjad Afghani, spokesperson of Jaish-e-Mohammad, almost confirmed the official version and admitted that three members of his organization had died. He made a sensational disclosure to local news agency, CNS, that a six-member group of Jaish, comprising Yousaf Badni, Qari Mumtaz, Assadullah Afghani, Saiful Islam, Babar and Usama, were on way to Srinagar to launch suicide strikes at two major Army formations.

“Three of our cadres got killed and others managed to escape before striking on the Army headquarters at Haft Chinaar”, a Valley-based commander was intercepted while radioing the message to his headquarters in Pakistan.

Toll of the October 21 gunbattle, in fact, reached six when three young civilians perished in the blast of a shell that had been dropped here, most probably by mistake or carelessness.

Before the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and host of separatist organizations could exploit the situation, government functionaries and NC leaders filled the vacuum with their dominating presence. Divisional Commissioner, Asgar Samoon, and Deputy Commissioner of Srinagar, Meraj Ahmed Kakroo, visited remains of Bhat’s family. They conveyed to him not only the condolences and sympathies of the government but also the decisions immediately taken by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to rehabilitate the family: Rs 15 Lakh (500,000 for each of the decaeased) plus a piece of land for construction of a fresh house and reimbursement of entire expenditure incurred on medical treatment of the injured.

Inspite of continuous snowing, Chief Minister’s advisor and MLA Iddgah, Mubarak Gul, and MLA Batmaloo, Irfan Shah, rushed from Jammu and called on the family. They too communicated not only Omar Abdullah’s sympathies and condelonces but also decisions being taken about substantial relief. Gul and Shah also visited a hospital in Srinagar, inquired about the condition of the injured and instructions to the administrations that best possible treatment be provided to the ill-fated patients---something never done during five turbulent months of the year 2010.

Notwithstanding his heavy schedule in Jammu, Omar was simultaneously proactive on the Maloora bloodshed on his Twitter.  “God please please put an end to all this death & destruction. How many more graveyards do we have to fill before someone says ENOUGH (sic)", Omar said in a post on the social networking website.

Replying to the Tweets he received from his followers on the website, Omar said, "It doesn't matter who the hell the grenade belonged to, all that matters is that 2 young lives have been snuffed out much before their time (sic)" The chief minister also tweeted: "doesn't it bother you how in every tragedy you are conditioned to blame the security forces. What about LeT that created encounter".

He further said "I'm conditioned to call a spade a spade. Try it some time, it's liberating". In reply to another Tweet, Omar said, "I'm well aware of that but unless your CM is God himself/herself there are somethings that are beyond any human's control".

“This is, indeed, a timely action. After Sopore and Handwara, Omar Abdullah has denied the third successive opportunity (of raising passions) to the Hurriyat and PDP”, Bhat’s visibly relieved relative Abdul Aziz told Early Times.

END