Passion crime killed Asrar

The curious case of Asrar Mushtaq, 20, who went missing on July 3 and was found with his throat slit four days later, was cracked on Tuesday night.

The curious case of Asrar Mushtaq, 20, who went missing on July 3 and was found with his throat slit four days later, was cracked on Tuesday night.

HT Image

Police informed he was killed by two jealous rivals, who resented his growing friendship with a local girl on the social networking site Orkut.

Mushtaq’s disappearance sparked furious anti government protests in Srinagar, which reached their peak when his body was discovered. The People’s Democratic Party called a three-day bandh as speculation ran rife about his having been illegally detained and tortured to death by the security forces.

Tempers ran high as already Kashmir had already witnessed the rape and murder of two women in Shopian on May 30 amid accusations about the culpability of the security forces.

The police have arrested Asrar’s friends, Imran Baba and Asim Ali, both city residents, after tracing the call details of Asrar’s phone.

“Imran was with a girl who of late started chatting with Asrar on Orkut as well,” said Ahfad ul Mujtaba, senior superintendent of police. “When the girl removed Imran’s name from her list of friends, but continued to keep Asrar, Imran became furious.”

“They took the body of Asrar in the Maruti car of Imran’s uncle after three days and dumped it in a graveyard,” Mujtaba added.

However Mujtaba refused to divulge the details of the girl. “People often use fake names on socialising networking sites. We are investigating into the case,” he said.

Mujtaba castigated those who blamed police for his disappearance. “People often draw conclusion without verifying facts,” Mujtaba stated.