Dec 2014 Sgr Acid Attack: Court awards lifer to two convicts

Have succeeded in my mission, says Advocate; Victim demands blanket ban on sulphuric acid in markets

Srinagar, Aug 22  : A court here on Tuesday convicted two persons for throwing acid on a Kashmiri law student in Nowshera, Srinagar in 2014 and awarded life imprisonment to the culprits.

The duo, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), were awarded lifer under section 326 RPC, he said.

Advocate Abdul Aziz Teli said that the two youth identified as Irshad Amin Wani, son of Mohammed Amin Wani of Wazirbagh, Srinagar and Mohammed Umar Noor, son of Noor Mohammed Dar of Bemina, were awarded lifer today by Principal Sessions Judge Srinagar, Jawad Ahmad in a case of acid attack that took place on December 11, 2014, just outside the Kashmir Law College in Srinagar.

“I am happy after succeeding in my mission today. It was my mission to ensure conviction in this case as I had opted to fight on behalf of the victim for the wellbeing of the society. I have not taken a single penny from the acid attack victim so far,” he said.

Advocate Teli further said that the court has given a signal today that it will ensure that the criminals are convicted. “My demand is that there should be an amendment in the section as such criminals should not only get life imprisonment but should be awarded the death penalty,” he said.

The Advocate further added that he was not happy with the fine imposed on the convicts as there is an announcement of just Rs 10 lakhs—Rs 5 lakh each, which is not sufficient as so far a total of Rs 37 lakhs were spent on the victim’s treatment.

The victim, Sehar Nazir, expressed her happiness over the verdict, but demanded a blanket ban on the availability of sulphuric acid from the market. “I am here today because the sulphuric acid is easily available in the market. If it would have been banned then the situation could have been different,” Sehar said.

She further said that after nine years of trial, justice has prevailed at the end. “The judgment will serve as an example to the people and no one could dare to take part in such activities in the future,” she said.

Pertinently, the acid attack took place on December 11, 2014, just outside the Kashmir Law College in Srinagar. The involved persons were formally arrested on December 25, 2014.

Police were quick in investigating the case. The charge sheet against the accused was submitted on March 20, 2015—(KNO)