Yasin Malik was the 'main shooter' in 1990 IAF killings: Key witness tells Tada court

A second witness has identified jailed Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik as the ‘main shooter’ in the case of murder of four Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel in Jammu and Kashmir in 1990, according to The Times of India.

In the hearing on Friday, a person described as a ‘key witness’ identified Malik as the one who led the attack that killed four IAF personnel and injured 22 others on January 25, 1990, as they waited at a bus stop at Srinagar’s Rawalpora area.

The ToI reported the witness as testifying that one of the other arrested men, Nana Ji, trained an AK-47 rifle on him and was about to fire before turning away.

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Previously, in 2023, another a retired colleague of one of the victims had identified Malik as the main shooter. He was present in the courthouse as the second witness also identified Malik on Friday.

Malik’s trial is being held at a Tada (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities [Prevention] Act) court in Jammu. He could face a death penalty if convicted.

Malik is currently serving a life sentence is a terror financing case. He has more than 60 cases lodged against him. He is the head of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), which has been declared as an unlawful organisation by association.

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In his terrorist career, Malik was also involved in the abduction of Rubaiya Sayeed, daughter of then Union Home Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed in 1989, which is seen as one of the turning points of terrorism in Kashmir. She was released after then-Union government agreed to JKLF’s demand to release five jailed terrorists — Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Sher Khan, Noor Mohammad Kalwal, Altaf Ahemed and Javed Ahemed Jargar.

In the case related to her abduction, Sayeed has previously identified Malik as her abductor.