Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik on Monday sought exemplary punishment to whoever raped a minor in Bandipora district as widespread protests rocked the Kashmir Valley, shutting down businesses and educational institutions. “Governor has expressed deep shock and pain over the extremely heinous incident of rape of a 3-year-old girl from Bandipora,” a Raj Bhawan statement said.
It said the Governor spoke to S.P. Pani, Inspector General of Police (IGP) in Kashmir, and directed him “to work swiftly in the case and ensure that the culprit gets exemplary punishment for this shameful act”. The Governor asked religious leaders of different communities to deplore this gruesome incident and appealed to the people to remain calm and not let “anti-social elements disturb peace and harmony in the society”.
Police have lodged an FIR against the principal of a private school, who allegedly issued a fake birth certificate in favour of the accused that showed him as a minor. Police said scientific evidence will be collected to determine the actual age of the accused and said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused was around 20 years old. The incident triggered massive protests at various places in the valley forcing businesses, public transport and educational institutions to close down. People in large numbers took to the streets across the state capital and other places demanding death penalty for the man accused of raping the girl last week. (IANS)
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