Srinagar, June 29: The State Investigation Agency (SIA), Kashmir, on Monday filed a comprehensive 737-page chargesheet before a Special Court in Srinagar in connection with the 1990 abduction and murder of SKIMS nurse Sarla Bhat, marking a major breakthrough in one of Jammu and Kashmir’s oldest terror-related cases.
The chargesheet was submitted before the Court of the Additional Sessions Judge, TADA/POTA, and the Special Judge designated under the NIA Act in Srinagar. The investigation was handed over to the SIA by the Director General of Police on March 18, 2024, after which the agency conducted an extensive probe.
According to officials, the chargesheet is based on oral testimonies, documentary records, forensic and ballistic reports, medical evidence, electronic material and detailed field investigations carried out during the course of the inquiry.
The SIA stated that Sarla Bhat, a staff nurse at Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura, was allegedly abducted near the hospital on April 18, 1990, tortured and later shot dead in Srinagar’s Omer Colony area. The case remained unresolved for nearly 35 years due to the prevailing security situation and widespread fear that prevented witnesses from coming forward.
Following the reopening of the investigation, the agency reconstructed the sequence of events using protected witnesses, eyewitness testimonies, forensic analysis, medical records and documentary evidence.
The chargesheet names former JKLF chief Mohammad Yasin Malik, Khurshid Ahmad Chalkoo, Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Mohammad Yousuf Sofi alias Idrees and Ghulam Mohammad Taploo as accused. Three of the accused—Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Mohammad Yousuf Sofi alias Idrees and Ghulam Mohammad Taploo—have since died, while Yasin Malik remains in judicial custody in another case.
The SIA also informed the court that proclamation proceedings have been initiated against Khurshid Ahmad Chalkoo, who is alleged to have fled to Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The accused have been booked under Sections 364, 341, 302 read with 34, 201 and 120-B of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC), relevant provisions of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA), 1987, and Sections 7 and 27 of the Indian Arms Act, 1959.
According to the investigation, allegations portraying Sarla Bhat as an informer were found to be baseless and were allegedly used as a pretext for her targeted killing. The agency further alleged that the murder was part of a broader campaign aimed at spreading fear and facilitating the displacement of the Kashmiri Pandit community during the early years of militancy.
The SIA said the filing of the chargesheet reflects its continued commitment to investigating unresolved terror cases and reaffirmed that no terror-related crime is beyond the reach of the law, regardless of the time elapsed.
