Srinagar, September 2, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Jailed Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik has decided not to contest the ongoing trial in the 1990 murder of Kashmiri Pandit nurse Sarla Bhat and has instead asked the court to award him capital punishment, according to reports.
Malik submitted a 25-page statement before the Additional Sessions Judge (TADA/POTA) and Special Judge designated under the NIA Act in Srinagar through his counsel, Advocate Abu Adil Pandit. The court has listed the matter for the prosecution’s response on September 19.
While maintaining that he has been falsely implicated, Malik said he arrived at the decision after “deep reflection” and “Istikhara”, a voluntary Islamic prayer seeking divine guidance before an important decision. He specifically stated that his decision not to contest the proceedings should not be treated as an admission of guilt or acceptance of the allegations.
The development follows a 737-page chargesheet filed by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) in June in the case concerning the abduction and killing of Bhat, who was working as a nurse at the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS). She was abducted and killed on April 18, 1990, and her body was later recovered from Malabagh on the outskirts of Srinagar.
The chargesheet names Malik, Khurshid Ahmad Chalkoo, Abdul Hamid Sheikh, Mohammad Yousuf Sofi and Ghulam Mohammad Taploo as accused.
Malik has denied involvement in Bhat’s killing. In his submission, he said he learnt about the murder months after it occurred while he was in judicial custody. He also questioned the prosecution’s reliance on an alleged handwritten JKLF note purportedly recovered from the crime scene and rejected the claim that Bhat was targeted for allegedly acting as an informer for security forces.
Malik further questioned why his name did not figure in the investigation conducted at the time of the killing.
In a separate personal message included in the submission, Malik announced his decision to separate from his Pakistani wife, Mushaal Hussein Mullick. Reports quoted him as saying that he did not want her to spend the rest of her life bearing the burden of his circumstances or living as his widow. He expressed love and respect for Mushaal and their daughter, Raziya Sultana, and urged them to begin a new chapter with “dignity and hope”.
Malik also asked his daughter to remain in regular contact with her grandmother in Kashmir.
Malik and Mushaal married in Pakistan in 2009 and have a daughter.
The proceedings are separate from Malik’s conviction in the 2017 terror-funding case, in which a Delhi court sentenced him to life imprisonment in 2022. His request for capital punishment in the Sarla Bhat case does not itself amount to a death sentence and remains subject to the ongoing judicial proceedings.
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