M A I N   N E W S

Curfew relaxed in Jammu
3 of family killed in Kargil blast
Tribune News Service and agencies

JAMMU, Feb 7 — The curfew was relaxed for nine hours today in Jammu city and its adjoining areas. The District Magistrate, Mr R.K. Goyal, said the curfew was first relaxed from 9 a.m. to 12 noon and then it was extended up to 6 p.m.

Authorities said the curfew was completely lifted in the old city areas. However, night curfew would continue in sensitive areas of Gandhi Nagar, Nanak Nagar and Digiana Ashram as a precautionary measure. In these areas relaxation was given up to 6 p.m. No untoward incident was reported and the situation was fast returning to normal, the authorities said.

Reports said some Sikh youths again gathered in the Nanak Nagar area on Wednesday following rumours that another injured Sikh agitator had died in the PGI, at Chandigarh. Mr Goyal who was present near Nanak Nagar Gurdwara informed the agitators that Jivan Singh who was airlifted to the PGI, on Monday was recovering and the news about his death was incorrect.

A bandh was observed in Udhampur and RS Pura towns on Wednesday in protest against Saturday’s killing of six Sikhs by militants in Srinagar.

SRINAGAR: Three persons, including a woman, were killed when a shell from the Kargil war exploded near Kargil yesterday. In the militancy-related incidents one person was killed, two security forces personnel were injured while three suspects were apprehended and a large quantity of arms and ammunition recovered.

The police here said that three persons of Thurmukh Pushkum village, 10 km away from Kargil town in the Ladakh region were killed when a shell of the Kargil war exploded. The incident took place when three members of a family were fiddling with the shell yesterday. They were identified as Ibrahim, Baqir and Hawa.

Two security men were injured when unidentified militants hurled a grenade towards a patrol party of the security forces near bus stand at Tral in Pulwama district this afternoon, the police said.

A suspected militant was killed in the Ganderbal area last night while being taken for recovery by the security forces and SOG. He was identified as Ghulam Mohiuddin Cherri, alias Muzamil, code Saleem or Chhatergul, Kangan in Srinagar district. The recoveries included one AK 47 rifle, two magazines, one bonnet, one remote device, two grenades, 14 AK rounds, eight metres of fuse wire and 10 kg of explosives. “While on way back from the said hideout the joint party was fired at by terrorists in which the said militant was killed and a constable, Ghulam Mohiuddin of SOG recovered injuries”, a spokesman of the zonal police headquarters said.

However, the police headquarters bulletin stated that militants fired at a police party at Behama, Ganderbal, which was returned in self-defence. In the exchange of fire one militant, who was later identified as Ghulam Mohiuddin, was killed.