Srinagar, Aug. 21 -- The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has pulled up senior government officials for willfully delaying compensation to a civilian who lost his arm in a cross-firing incident, terming their conduct as contemptuous.

Justice Rahul Bharti, while hearing a contempt petition filed by Jehangir Ahmad Khan, observed that both the Principal Secretary to the Home Department and the Deputy Commissioner Baramulla had repeatedly evaded compliance of a 2023 writ court order that had directed payment of Rs 10 lakh compensation to the victim.

The court noted that despite the writ court's direction in June 2023, and the dismissal of a belated appeal in February 2025, the officials failed to release the remaining Rs 5 lakh of t...