Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Army jawans in heinous act


 “An 11-year-old boy was found with severe burns in a restricted area on the premises of Mehdipatnam Garrison on Wednesday afternoon. Family and locals alleged the boy, Shaik Mustafauddin, who suffered over 90% burns, was set ablaze by Army jawans”
This news item was reported by Times of India (

  . "Locals said they found Mustafa lying outside the barricade with severe burn injuries. I spoke to the boy at Osmania General Hospital (OGH) and he told me that while he was playing near his house, two Army jawans called him into the barricaded area. They asked him to sneak in through the fencing. After the boy entered the restricted area, the two jawans thrashed him and threw gasoline on him. The boy said when he tried to escape, the jawans beat him up again and set him ablaze," Greater Hyderabad mayor Majid Hussain told TOI.

 A 32-year-old Army lance naik, who was questioned in connection with 11-year-old boy Mustafa's murder at Mehdipatnam Garrison here, shot himself dead in the early hours of Monday, reported

“Apart from Appalaraju, the investigating officials said three other army personnel were on their list of supsects. The post-mortem report suggested that there was a three centimetre long anal tear on Mustafa, but swabs sent to FSL confirmed that there were not traces of semen”. (

This was as gruesome a case as that of Nirbhaya, (to call a victim nirbhaya is a misnomer. Nirbhaya means ‘nidar, fearless. How can you call a victim fearless. But the TOI never misses an opportunity to claim they were the first to use the word).
But unlike support for  ‘nibhaya’, there were no candlelights. No protests. Why? Because army jawans are suspected?
This case is more horrific than 'nirbhaya' incidence because, firstly it was in army area and secondly our 'rakshaks' are accused of the crime.

There is Kendriya Vidyalaya in the same garrison much inside the guarded gate. There are many civilian students too in the school. I am sure their parents must be quite worried about the safety of their children.

  I wonder what happens to boys in the villages on our borders!
I remember an incidence in 1962 when I went for NCC camp, which was in the premesis of Lalit mahal palace, a few kilometers from Mysore. One day all the cadets in uniform were taken to Mysore to see brindavan garden. Our way was through a village. We found all doors and windows of all houses were shut. On enquiry we learnt the people were afraid of men in uniform. I wonder what their experience was with the jawans of Mysore maharaja.
Our CM is trying for relocation of all garrisons spread over Hyderabad and Secunderabad in one location away from the city limits. Hope he succeeds.

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