Srinagar, June 30: In a major breakthrough in one of Jammu and Kashmir's longest-pending terror investigations, the State Investigation Agency (SIA) has filed a 737-page chargesheet before a Special Court in Srinagar in connection with the 1990 abduction, alleged rape, torture, and murder of Kashmiri Pandit nurse Sarla Bhat. The chargesheet names jailed former JKLF chief Yasin Malik along with four others as accused in the case.

According to the SIA, the investigation concludes that the crime formed part of a larger terror conspiracy aimed at targeting members of the Kashmiri Pandit community and creating an atmosphere of fear that contributed to their mass exodus from the Valley in 1990. The agency said the chargesheet is supported by protected witness testimonies, eyewitness accounts, forensic and ballistic evidence, medical records, documentary material, and electronic evidence gathered during the reinvestigation.

Officials described the filing of the chargesheet—more than three decades after the crime—as a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice for victims of terrorism. The case, reopened by the SIA in 2024, is seen as one of the most important legacy terror investigations in Jammu and Kashmir.

The development has rekindled hopes among the victim's family and the Kashmiri Pandit community that accountability may finally be established after decades of waiting, marking a crucial step toward justice in one of the Valley's most tragic and symbolic cases.