Justice Jan disowned these portions today. “Police had presented this report to me,” he said. “But I rejected it. I did not believe in it.

It was untrustworthy and wrong information. So I did not incorporate it in my final report,” he said.

His report, Justice Jan said, had been based on the interviews with forty witnesses, whereas the police report was based on interviews with sixty witnesses. SSP Mughal, however, said the police team and Justice Jan had been together in interviewing witnesses.

The report, released on Friday, ran into controversy over its observations about the character of the deceased women Neelofar, 22, and Asiya, 17. The report also hinted at a possible role in their death of Shakeel Ahanger, the husband of Neelofar and brother of Asiya.

The deceased women, the report said, were “frequent visitors” to the orchard where they went missing. “The purpose of their regular and frequent visit could not be established so far,” it said, adding, “It is quite possible that during these frequent visits to the orchard in the last six/seven months they (the women) must have developed some relation with other persons. Shakeel has come to know about this relation which could have led to the planning and execution of this incident.”

About Shakeel Ahanger, the report said: “He (Shakeel) does not carry a good reputation among the society and is being known for his immoral activities.”

The Majlis-Mashawarat, a committee of local elders spearheading the protests over the issue in Shopian, reacted strongly, accusing the commission of “pointing fingers wildly in every direction”.

... contd.