‘Custodial torture’ of Gujjar youth: HC directs personal appearance of IO along with CD file
The HC has directed the IO to appear before it along with the CD file and apprise the court with regard to the investigation being carried out in FIR No. 0032 of 2025 dated March 9. The Gujjar youth was allegedly tortured in the police custody for his alleged links with terrorists.
Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh on Thursday directed personal appearance of the investigating officer in a case pertaining to alleged “custodial torture” of a Gujjar youth in police custody, who later “died by suicide to escape police harassment” in the Billawar area of Kathua district.
SHO of the Billawar Police Station is the investigating officer in the case.
The high court has directed the IO to appear before it along with the CD file and apprise the court with regard to the investigation being carried out in FIR No. 0032 of 2025 dated March 9. The Gujjar youth was allegedly tortured in the police custody for his alleged links with terrorists.
To escape further torture, the youth had later reportedly consumed poison and died by suicide.
A case under section 108, 127(2) and 115 (2) of the BNS stand registered at Billawar police station.
The high court also issued notice to the J&K chief secretary, principal secretary, home department, principal secretary to the lieutenant governor, CBI through its director; DGP J&K, IGP Jammu zone, SSP Kathua and SHO Billawar Police Station.
The notices were accepted by senior additional advocate general Monika Kohli.
The court has granted one week’s time to the respondents to file the response.
These directions were passed in a writ petition filed by the father of the deceased youth and the widow of the youth.
The petitioners have sought transfer of the case to the CBI for a fair, independent and impartial probe.
Petitioners’ counsel advocate Appu Singh Salathia in the court advanced the arguments at length on behalf of the petitioners and argued that a video of the youth had gone viral on social media on February 5 where he stated that during police custody, he was “brutally tortured” throughout the night to compel him to confess his links with the militants operating in the hills of Billawar.
In the video clip, he had stated that to escape police torture, he had no option but to end his life.
However, the district administration of Kathua had issued a rebuttal and branded him as an overground worker (OGW).
A magisterial inquiry was also ordered by the Kathua district commissioner. Besides, departmental inquiry was also marked to the DIG, Jammu-Samba-Kathua range, Shiv Kumar Sharma.
Salathia further submitted that on the directions of the sub-judge (special mobile magistrate), Kathua, SHO Billawar Police Station eventually registered FIR No. 0032/2025 on March 9.
However, the names of police officials, who tortured the youth and his father were not mentioned in the FIR.
Salathia also invited the attention of the court to the ‘action-taken report’ filed by the police in the court of sub-judge (special mobile magistrate), Kathua, where clean chit was given to accused officials involved in the matter.
After considering the detailed arguments of Salathia, Justice Nargal observed that passing interim direction was deferred for the time being.
The court directed the registry to list the case on April 25 with the personal appearance of the investigating officer along with the CD file.