On 10 April 1996, the body of Kashmiri newspaper editor Ghulam Rasool Sheikh was found in the state’s Jhelum river. Sheikh had been missing since late March, when family members said that he was kidnapped by an Indian-backed militia. Local police, on the other hand, contend that he was abducted and slain by separatist guerrillas. […]
On 10 April 1996, the body of Kashmiri newspaper editor Ghulam
Rasool Sheikh was found in the state’s Jhelum river. Sheikh had
been missing since late March, when family members said that he
was kidnapped by an Indian-backed militia. Local police, on the
other hand, contend that he was abducted and slain by separatist
guerrillas. The editor of two Kashmiri newspapers, the Urdu-
language daily “Rehnuma-e-Kashmir” and the English-language
weekly “Saffron Times”, Sheikh had recently spoken out against an
increase in killings and arson incidents in the vicinity of his
hometown, Pampur. Sheikh was also the head of an Islamic trust
that is responsible for shrine and mosque management in the area.
An autopsy was performed on the body; however, local reporters
said that the details had not yet been released.
Sheikh’s slaying closely paralleled the recent murder of Kashmiri
lawyer and human rights activist Jalil Andrabi, whose body was
discovered floating in the Jhelum river on 27 March. Andrabi’s
wife reported that her husband had not been seen since his arrest
by Indian army officers on 8 March.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
so that those responsible are brought to justice
Appeals To
His Excellency P.V. Narasimha Rao
Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
South Block, New Delhi 110 011
India
Fax: +91 11 3016857
Madhukar Gupta
Joint Secretary
Department of Jammu and Kashmir Affairs
New Delhi 110 001
India
Fax: +91 11 3015750
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