Farooq working as a data operator, had gone missing since past three days. Police said his body was fished today from river Jehlum near Shalteng.

As soon the news spread, tension mounted in the area. Shop-keepers pulled down their shutters and traffic remained off from roads. Thousands of people flooded the Chattabal area. Youth erected barricades at various places. A protest was also held in the locality.

Farooq was arrested in 2009 on stone-throwing charges. “He had many cases and had to appear in court, We went to court to get his bail because he didn’t appear in the court few days ago in one of the cases. But, we couldn’t get bail due to some reasons. Besides, his lawyer wasn’t present there.” his brother, Nasir Azam Khan said while talking to KMR NEWS.

"At 5:30 PM on 22 August, he left office. We called him and he said I am on my way. After an hour, his mother again called him and he said, he would reach home in five minutes. But, after that his phone switched off, We traced his phone and the last location it showed was Zaina Kadal, but after that we remained unaware about his whereabouts” Nasir, added.

Nasir ruled out that his brother may have committed suicide. “There was no such problem with him,” he said, adding: “He didn’t have personal animosity with anybody.”

The family claimed that policemen came to their house several times after Farooq missed the court hearing.  However, police denied that they were on a look out for Farooq.

“He was not wanted in any case, why we would search him?” Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Safa Kadal said.

Some witnesses claimed that “he had marks on parts of his body, which indicate that he died after being hit by something,” but, police, on the other hand,  said, “there were no such marks.”

The autopsy report hasn’t been handed to the family.