Four youth from twin districts of South Kashmir are missing and among them two are engineering students. Three youth belonging to Pulwama district and one from Shopian district are missing from last many days and there are no traces of them.
“Soon after he went missing, we filed a missing report at Police Station Zainapora but so far there is no information about him,” they told KNO. Shakir a B Tech student at SSM College Parihaspora Pattan according to his family was never arrested before and never took part in protests.
“We are very much worried about him as we have been searching for him from last one month but have failed,” said one of his brothers.
“Anyone who joins militant rank uploads his photograph while carrying gun but he has not done it so we can’t say whether he is with militants or somewhere else,” he said. Belonging to a financially sound family, Shakir’s family comprises six brothers and two sisters besides parents.
According to locals, his father is a retired Irrigation Zildar while as his two brothers are also government employees. Another youth namely Naveed Hussian Tak, son of Gh Nabi Tak of Naina Batpora in Litter Tehsil of South Kashmir is missing since 19th January and still there are no traces about him.
“On 19th of this month, we asked him to visit Florence hospital Chanapora Srinagar for night as his grandmother was admit there, he took some eatable items with him to visit hospital however before visiting hospital his phone went off and still there is no information about him,” said Bilal Ahmad Tak, uncle of missing youth.
“We searched him everywhere however after failing to find him, we filed a missing report at Police Station Lassipora on 21st January and later we were called by Army as well,” he said.
Last year in May 2018, he was arrested by forces and was kept in police lock up for about for some of his Facebook posts however later he was released, he said.
Naveed a civil engineering student at Master Pro Nowgam Srinagar according to his friends was a close friend of Burhan Koka from Melhora Shopian, an active militant of Zakir Moosa led Ansar Gazwat-ul-Hind and it is likely to have joined AGH.
Belonging to a well-off family, Naveed a good cricketer is son of a police constable and his family consists of three brothers, one sister, grandmother besides parents. His elder brother has completed his masters in Chemistry from University of Kashmir.
Another youth namely Imran Ahmad Bhat, son of Mohammad Yousuf Bhat of Arihal village which is about two kilometers from Pulwama town according to his family is missing from last 15 days.
“We have filed his missing report at police station Pulwama however still there is no information about him,” they told KNO. According to locals, he is cousin of slain Saqib Shafi Dar who was killed in an encounter along with his associate in Khonmouh area of Pampore on 26th January.
Another youth namely Bilal Majeed Khan, son of Ab Majeed Khan of Narbal village in Kakapora Tehsil of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district according to his family is missing from last one week and still there is no information about him. Belonging to middle class family, Bilal, a B.A student at Government Degree College Pulwama is 6th among seven sons of Ab Majeed, who is carpenter by profession.
“We have filed a missing report at Police Station Kakapora on 19th of this month but so far there is no information about him,” the family said. A police official on condition of anonymity said that it is likely that these missing youth have joined militant ranks.
A senior police official while confirming that these youth are missing said it is premature to say that they have joined militant ranks. “We are checking all angles in what circumstances they left home,” he said.
