The CBI on Monday told the Supreme Court that the alleged fake encounter at Pathribal in J&K 12 years ago,in which five people were killed by Army personnel,were cold-blooded murders and the accused officials deserve to be meted out exemplary punishment. Senior advocate Ashok Bhan,representing the CBI,told a special bench of Justices B S Chauhan and Swatanter Kumar that no prior sanction was required for prosecuting the Army officials for a crime committed outside their call of duty. Bhan said contrary to the Armys version of the incident,the encounter was not a joint operation with the Jammu and Kashmir Police. Our investigations have revealed it was a fake encounter and cold-blooded murder. If public confidence in the rule of law and dispensation of justices is to be sustained,the accused officers deserve to be meted out exemplary punishment, the CBI submitted. The Army has said prior sanction was mandatory for prosecuting the officials under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act.
