The state-run human rights commission Indian-administered Kashmir has told the government in Kashmir to investigate at least 2,080 unmarked mass graves discovered in border regions of the restive region.The Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), a human rights group in Kashmir, told the commission there were 3,844 unmarked graves —2,717 in Poonch and 1,127 […]
The state-run human rights commission Indian-administered Kashmir has told the government in Kashmir to investigate at least 2,080 unmarked mass graves discovered in border regions of the restive region.
The Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), a human rights group in Kashmir, told the commission there were 3,844 unmarked graves —2,717 in Poonch and 1,127 in Rajouri, twin districts in the region that lie along Line of Control (LoC) that divides the disputed territory between India and Pakistan, Al Jazeera reported.
The commission acknowledged the presence of 2,080 unmarked graves and asked the government for a comprehensive investigation to be completed in six months, including DNA tests of the bodies to compare it with family members of the disappeared.
In 2011, the commission directed the government to investigate the mass graves. At the time, a special team from the commission said 2,730 unidentified bodies were buried in 38 sites across northern Kashmir.
“The commission has no hesitation to issue the same directions, which were already issued in the case,” the recent order said.
APDP maintains 8,000 people have disappeared in the decades-old conflict, and accuses government forces of staging gun battles to cover up killings.
The association welcomed the commission’s latest demand to investigate mass graves in India’s Jammu and Kashmir state.
Since 2011, instead of complying with directions from the human rights commission, the government continues to avoid such an investigation on the pretext it would lead to a “law and order problem” in Kashmir, APDP said in a statement.
The European Parliament adopted a resolution in July 2008 and called on India’s government to ensure independent and impartial investigations into all mass graves, APDP said.
Officials contacted by Al Jazeera declined to comment on Friday.
