Yasin Malik Announces Divorce From Mushaal Malik, Says He Wants to Spare Her Life as a Widow
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chairman Yasin Malik, currently lodged in Tihar Jail, has denied any involvement in the 1990 abduction and killing of Kashmiri Pandit nurse Sarla Bhat, while telling a Srinagar court that he does not wish to contest the proceedings and has instead sought capital punishment. Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel
Malik made the submission in a 25-page affidavit filed before the Additional Sessions Judge dealing with TADA and POTA cases in Srinagar. In the affidavit, he termed the allegations against him baseless and maintained that he had no role in the killing.
The development comes shortly after the Jammu and Kashmir State Investigation Agency (SIA) filed a 737-page chargesheet in the decades-old case, naming Malik and four other accused in connection with the abduction and killing of Bhat in April 1990.
Malik denies allegations
According to reports on his affidavit, Malik has categorically denied that he ordered, planned or participated in the killing of Sarla Bhat. He has also challenged the prosecution’s allegations and evidence linking him to the crime.
Malik’s latest position represents a significant development in the long-pending case. While denying involvement, he has stated that he will not contest the trial proceedings and has asked the court to award him the death penalty.
His request for capital punishment, however, does not amount to a court-imposed sentence. The case remains subject to judicial proceedings and the court will determine the matter in accordance with the evidence and applicable law.
SIA chargesheet filed after decades
The case relates to the abduction and killing of Sarla Bhat, a staff nurse at the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura.
The SIA filed its 737-page chargesheet before the court of the Additional Sessions Judge dealing with TADA/POTA cases and the Special Judge designated under the NIA Act in Srinagar. The agency said its investigation drew upon oral testimonies, documentary material, forensic and ballistic reports, medical evidence, electronic material and other records collected during the probe.
The chargesheet names Malik, who was then a senior commander of the JKLF, along with Khurshid Ahmad Chalkoo, Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Mohammad Yousuf Sofi alias Idrees and Ghulam Mohammad Taploo. Investigators have alleged that the killing was connected to a wider militant campaign in Kashmir.
The case was transferred to the SIA in March 2024, following which investigators reopened and pursued the decades-old case.
What happened to Sarla Bhat
Sarla Bhat, a 27-year-old Kashmiri Pandit nurse working at SKIMS, was abducted in April 1990, during the early and extremely violent phase of militancy in Kashmir.
According to reports based on the chargesheet, her body was subsequently recovered in Srinagar. The killing became one of the cases associated with the violence and fear that surrounded Kashmiri Pandit families during the period.
The SIA has alleged that the crime was not an isolated act but part of a broader conspiracy involving the JKLF. Its chargesheet reportedly cites witness statements, forensic material, historical records and other evidence in support of the prosecution case.
Malik also announces separation from wife
Apart from the Sarla Bhat case, Malik’s affidavit contains a personal decision concerning his marriage.
He has announced his intention to divorce his Pakistani wife, Mushaal Malik, saying he does not want her to spend her life bearing the consequences of his imprisonment and circumstances. The development was reported alongside his decision not to contest the criminal proceedings.
Malik has been imprisoned in Tihar Jail since 2019 after being convicted in a separate terror-funding case. His latest affidavit concerns the proceedings arising from the Sarla Bhat case and should not be confused with the conviction in that separate matter.
A decades-old case returns to court
The latest development has brought renewed attention to one of the prominent unresolved cases from the early years of militancy in Kashmir.
The SIA’s filing of the 737-page chargesheet in June marked a major step in the investigation, coming more than three decades after Bhat’s killing. Her family, however, has questioned the long delay in bringing the case to this stage.
With Malik now denying involvement but simultaneously declining to contest the proceedings and seeking capital punishment, the case has taken an unusual turn. The court will now consider the prosecution’s evidence, Malik’s affidavit and the legal issues arising from his stated decision not to contest the trial.
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