18 years after he lost his family, Jammu and Kashmir terror victim to get Rs 35 lakh ex-gratia

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission has directed the state government to give a compensation of Rs 35 lakh to a man who lost seven members of his family in a terror attack 18 years ago, saying the delay amounted to glaring “violation of human rights”.

Roop Lal, a resident of Mendhar in Poonch district, had lodged a complaint with the Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) saying seven members of his family were killed by militants during an attack on his house on 2 July, 1999, and he had received ex-gratia of just Rs one lakh from the state.

“After carefully scrutiny of material available on record, the commission is satisfied that the complainant has made out a good case for grant of compensation to the tune of Rs 35 lakh,” SHRC member Jung Bahadur Singh Jamwal said in his order released by the commission on Thursday.

“The chief secretary of the state is directed to pay sum of Rs five lakh each to the complainant against the killing of seven members of his family,” he said.

Jamwal said the delay on the part of the government to provide adequate compensation to Lal amounted to glaring “violation of human rights”.

“The incident is rare but the authorities concerned with the payment of compensation were reluctant and ignorant about the pain and sufferings of the complainant. The compensation whatever was due within ambit of various beneficial schemes floated by the government should have been extended to the complainant,” he said.