J&K: State Human Righs Commission recommends Rs 35 lakh compensation to man who lost family in terror attack

Expressing concern over the delay in providing adequate compensation to a man who lost seven members of his family in a terrorist attack 18 years ago, the J&K human rights body on Friday recommended a sum of Rs 35 lakh as compensation.

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

"After carefully scrutiny of the material available on the 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.

"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," SHRC member Jung Bahadur Singh Jamwal said in his order released by the commission.

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 for 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.