Shopian rape case: Residents protest against CBI

People staged a demonstration in Shopian town today to protest against what they called the CBI's attempts to hush up the alleged rape and murder of two women there which sparked off massive protests in the valley in May this year.

Chanting slogans against the CBI, the protesters accused the investigating agency of trying to hush up the case and vowed to intensify their agitation if justice was not delivered. Majlis-i-Mashawrat, which led the demonstration, is an organisation formed by locals to spearhead the movement for seeking justice in the case.

"We are committed to our stand of identification and punishment to the culprits and will continue to fight till justice is delivered," head of Mashawrat AR Dallal said. Meanwhile, the CBI reportedly interrogated four lawyers of the district for several hours in connection with the case.

The recovery of the bodies of 17-year-old Asiya and her 22-year-old sister-in-law Neelofar Jan in May this year had triggered largescale protests in the valley.