Basharaat Masood
Abdul Ahad Shah had a dream. Like Shah himself, his son should be a cop. Five years ago, the dream was shattered. Shah is a disillusioned man today, dying to know whether his son is alive.
Shah who served the Jammu and Kashmir Police for three decades guarding lives and property of others found himself helpless when it came to saving his own son Younis. In 2002, Younis was arrested from the house, says Shah.
"Soldiers of the 118 Battalion of the Border Security Force (BSF) took away my son," says Shah, who has since retired from the police force. BSF personnel raided his house at Beerwah in central Kashmir's Budgam district and arrested Younis, says Shah. "When I went to the BSF camp, they denied having any knowledge of my son's arrest," he says. "I begged them to return my son. It was of no use".
When the BSF denied having made the arrest, Shah went to the police station to register an FIR. Being a cop himself did not help, as he failed to motivate the Station House Officer (SHO) to register a case.
The family protested and an FIR was finally registered after more than a year of the disappearance of Younis, says Shah. Soon the Shahs' started a search themselves. "We searched for him in every jail and every security camp," says the retired cop. So far, there has been no success.
The Shah family's troubles had started much before the disappearance of Younis. The family, Shah says, had been antagonised by the Ikhwanis (counter-insurgents) comprising mostly surrendered militants. In 2002, counter-insurgents were in full force in Kashmir. They wanted Younis to join them, says Shah.
"A much-feared Ikhwani of the village, Hassan Ganie, and his associates were forcing youth to join them," Shah says. "They were after my son too. But he refused to join them. One day, Ganie forcibly took away my son to join counter-insurgency operations. But I managed to rescue him. Ganie continued to harass my son and our family".
The counter-insurgents threatened Younis, who ran an embroidery shop, of dire consequences if he failed to join them. He didn't oblige them. "Barely days after the threat, the BSF party arrested him (Younis)," says Shah.
In course of the search for Younis, the retired cop was duped of Rs 25,000 by a political activist who promised him information about Younis. Shah has not given up the search. And, like many others, Shah wants only one news: "Is my son dead or alive?"
Abdul Ahad Shah had a dream. Like Shah himself, his son should be a cop. Five years ago, the dream was shattered. Shah is a disillusioned man today, dying to know whether his son is alive.
Shah who served the Jammu and Kashmir Police for three decades guarding lives and property of others found himself helpless when it came to saving his own son Younis. In 2002, Younis was arrested from the house, says Shah.
"Soldiers of the 118 Battalion of the Border Security Force (BSF) took away my son," says Shah, who has since retired from the police force. BSF personnel raided his house at Beerwah in central Kashmir's Budgam district and arrested Younis, says Shah. "When I went to the BSF camp, they denied having any knowledge of my son's arrest," he says. "I begged them to return my son. It was of no use".
When the BSF denied having made the arrest, Shah went to the police station to register an FIR. Being a cop himself did not help, as he failed to motivate the Station House Officer (SHO) to register a case.
The family protested and an FIR was finally registered after more than a year of the disappearance of Younis, says Shah. Soon the Shahs' started a search themselves. "We searched for him in every jail and every security camp," says the retired cop. So far, there has been no success.
The Shah family's troubles had started much before the disappearance of Younis. The family, Shah says, had been antagonised by the Ikhwanis (counter-insurgents) comprising mostly surrendered militants. In 2002, counter-insurgents were in full force in Kashmir. They wanted Younis to join them, says Shah.
"A much-feared Ikhwani of the village, Hassan Ganie, and his associates were forcing youth to join them," Shah says. "They were after my son too. But he refused to join them. One day, Ganie forcibly took away my son to join counter-insurgency operations. But I managed to rescue him. Ganie continued to harass my son and our family".
The counter-insurgents threatened Younis, who ran an embroidery shop, of dire consequences if he failed to join them. He didn't oblige them. "Barely days after the threat, the BSF party arrested him (Younis)," says Shah.
In course of the search for Younis, the retired cop was duped of Rs 25,000 by a political activist who promised him information about Younis. Shah has not given up the search. And, like many others, Shah wants only one news: "Is my son dead or alive?"
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