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Anantnag baker goes on ‘rampage’, bludgeons mother, 2 others to death
Eyewitnesses told officials that the accused seemed to have “lost his mind” and appeared to be under the influence of drugs.
In a bizarre incident, a baker went on a homicidal rampage and attacked whomsoever came his way with a wooden log, bludgeoning three people, including his mother, to death in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Friday.
The accused, Javed Hassan Rather, who is in his 30s, killed three people, his mother Hafeeza, Mohammad Amin and Ghulam Nabi, all residents of Anantnag, and injured seven others, two of whom are critical.
Eyewitnesses told officials that Rather seemed to have “lost his mind” and appeared to be under the influence of drugs.
“Rather first attacked his father and mother early in the morning, after which he went on a rampage and attacked whomsoever came in his way for up to 2km,” said Pahalgam sub-divisional magistrate Nasir Ahmad.
“He was on a rampage, directly hitting people on their heads with a wooden log. Right now, we cannot say why he did so, but it appears some ‘unusual kind of mentality’. He was not suffering from any mental ailment and used to work, but something had changed of late. On December 22, he was roaming naked in the area,” Ahmad said, adding that locals’ claims of being under the influence of drugs will also be investigated.
Rather’s father said, “He attacked me first. I tried to get some people to control him, but he left, and took his mother with him to visit the shrine. On the way, he is believed to have killed his mother and some others. He was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs. He used to visit faith healers, something happened to him there.”
Condemning the incident, People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti, in a tweet said, she was “horrified by the barbaric incident at Aishmuqam.”
“Access to drugs and introduction of liquor in local shops in J&K has started a trail of death and destruction,” she said.
Anantnag National Conference president Altaf Kaloo demanded compensation for the slain and injured. “Strongly condemn the incident at Aishmuqam where a drug addict killed and injured six people. The deceased have been identified as M Amin Shah, GN Khadim and his own mother. Urge @OfficeOfLGJandK to take cognisance & release compensation of 10 lakh to deceased and ₹2 lakh to injured,” he said.
