Bashir Ahmad Butt, a lawyer and Vice-President of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), appears to have been taken hostage by members of the Border Security Force, in an attempt to force the surrender of his brother-in-law, Ghulam Rasool Dar. Fears for his safety are heightened by reports that he was threatened with death and severely beaten before he was taken away in the early hours of 4 March 1997. Members of the BSF also reportedly beat Ghulam Rasool’s wife and sons. A First Information Report (FIR) has been filed with police, and a habeas corpus petition will reportedly be filed in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, Srinagar, on 5 March.
