- Friday, April 04, 2025
By: indiaweekly.biz Staff
THE Indian Army has launched disciplinary proceedings against an unspecified number of soldiers following an inquiry into the killing of three suspected militants in the northern state of Kashmir.
A defence spokesman on Friday (18) said evidence showed the soldiers had exceeded their powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), which grants the Army broad authority including shoot-to-kill powers.
The three men — cousins whom the army claimed were suspected “Pakistani terrorists” — were killed on a counterinsurgency operation on July 18 in the southern Kashmir valley, and buried in remote border area.
But their families, who identified their bodies from pictures on social media, said they were local labourers.
The incident sparked outrage in Kashmir, with political groups, rights activists and many residents demanding an independent probe into the deaths.
“The inquiry has brought out certain prima facie evidence indicating that during the operation, powers vested under the AFSPA 1990 were exceeded,” Rajesh Kalia, a Srinagar-based defence spokesman, said.
“Consequently, the competent disciplinary authority has directed to initiate disciplinary proceedings under the Army Act against those found prima-facie answerable.”
A concurrent police investigation into the killing was yet to establish the involvement of the three men “with terrorism or related activities”, said an Army statement.
