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Saturday,
March 16, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Oppn walks
out of House Strike
against MP’s remarks total
Annual
leave of Northern Command troops reduced |
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‘40
custodial deaths’ in J&K since 1997 Foreign
ultra among 4 killed in Kashmir Relief for
militancy victims okayed
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Oppn walks out
of House Jammu, March 15 The question was tabled by a Panthers Party member, Mr Harsh Dev Singh, who had argued that legislators had no set protocol fixed by the government, with the result they were being given a shabby treatment at public and government functions. He said MLAs were as important as the ministers and the Chief Minister who essentially were members of the same House and which enabled them to occupy ministerial seats. When the government could not come up with a specific reply the Speaker, Mr Abdul Ahad Vakil, deferred the question for sometime and in the meantime, the authorities were directed to come out with details on the legislators’ protocol. Soon after question hour, the Speaker informed the House that the government records showed that no protocol had been set for legislators. Mr Vakil then directed the government to frame the protocol for the legislators. He was also critical of the practice in which a tehsildar could hoist the national or state flag at a function when the MLA of that area had no such power. The Opposition members were on their feet, protesting against lack of rules for protecting the protocol for the legislators. They walked out of the House in protest against the failure of the government to give a detailed reply. Mr Harsh Dev Singh said it was shameful for the legislators to visit the office chambers of the Chief Secretary and other bureaucrats when these officers should call on the MLAs. |
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Strike against MP’s remarks total Srinagar, March 15 Protest demonstrations were also held at Hazratbal, Maisuma and some other localities in the interior city in protest against the blasphemous remarks of the VHP leader and BJP MP, Mr Vinay Katiyar. Reports of demonstrations also came in from Baramula, about 60 km north of here. All shops and business establishments were closed and traffic was off the roads. There was thin attendance in government offices. Educational institutions and most banks were also closed. Passenger transport was off the road while autorickshaws, private and government vehicles plied normally. Other major towns of the valley also observed a complete shutdown against the remarks of the BJP MP staking claim on the holy relic at Hazratbal shrine. The bandh call was given by the Students Association and supported by various other separatist organisations. The reported remarks of the BJP leader have widely been condemned and protest demonstrations involving stonepelting by angry mobs in some parts of Srinagar city were reported on Wednesday. The separatist Hurriyat Conference has condemned the remarks of the BJP leader and described it as having been aimed at creating a communal wedge between different communities in the country. A spokesman of the APHC claimed that such irresponsible statements from these leaders were only aimed at the genocide of Muslims across the country. |
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Annual leave of Northern Command troops reduced Jammu, March 15 The curtailment of the annual leave is said to have been ordered following the withdrawal of cancellation of leave to the troops following Pakistani military buildup across the border since January. The leave curtailment has also been ordered to prevent any reduction of forces on the border as the government has decided not to go in for de-escalation on the LoC till Islamabad takes sincere measures to stop encouraging cross-border terrorism. Reports with the government, especially the Defence Ministry, indicate that Pakistani agencies continue to assist those engaged in the recruitment of activists for the Lashkar-e-Toiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad. According to the reports, these two cutfits have brought large groups of guerrillas on the launching pads across Poonch, Rajouri, Kupwara, Uri and Bandipore. Of late, Al-Badr, a splinter group of the Hizbul Mujahideen, has been receiving Pakistani support for giving a boost to the ongoing anti-India campaign in Jammu and Kashmir. The reports say that the Defence Ministry has ordered a three-tier security system all along the LoC and the international border to check infiltration, which is expected to increase from the next month following mountain routes becoming passable with the melting of snow. These reports have revealed that since all official and non-official agencies are engaged in bringing large groups of militants close to the border for being pushed into Jammu and Kashmir, the Pakistani troops have been directed to stop firing and shelling on Indian border posts and villages to create an impression that there was a lull along the LoC and the international border. Pakistani agencies believe that this could make the Indian authorities go in for de-escalation of troops on the border. According to Defence Ministry sources, during the past 10 days there has been considerable reduction in the level of firing and shelling from across the border. Instead of resorting to heavy pounding of deserted border villages with mortar shells and heavy-calibre weapons, the Pakistani troops have been seen indulging in result-oriented firing. During this period, more then eight jawans and six civilians have been killed in the Jammu sector. The sources said the reduction in the level of Pakistani firing and shelling was also the result of heavy losses the Pakistani troops had suffered during the past three months when the Indian forces retaliated using long-range guns and other weapons in which scores of Pakistani bunkers were destroyed. These reports indicate that the Pakistani agencies are concentrating on pushing into Jammu and Kashmir large groups of militants so that the level of violence, which has touched a now low during the past three months, is raised. During this period, the number of militancy-related incidents in the entire state has been reduced by over 60 per cent. The Defence Ministry sources have revealed that for the time being, the withdrawal of additional troops deployed on the LoC and the international border is out of question. |
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‘40 custodial deaths’ in J&K since 1997
Jammu, March 15 "Since all of these cases are under investigation, challans have not been produced, as yet. When investigations are complete, then only it could be confirmed whether there were custodial deaths," Mr Suhrawardhy said. The minister, who was replying to a question by Sheikh Abdul Rehman (BSP), also said 35 persons were reported missing after their arrests from five districts of Kashmir valley. Fifteen of them were from Baramulah, 11 from Kupwara, five from Anantnag, three from Pulwama and one from Budgam, he said. Mr Suhrawardhy said 474 Hindus, 481 Muslims and four Sikhs were killed by militants in Doda district between 1989 and February, 2002. Denying that people belonging to a particular community alone have been inducted in the village defence committees
(VDC) in the district, the minister said 7,758 Hindus and 727 Muslims were working as VDC members in Doda district.
PTI |
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Foreign
ultra among 4 killed in Kashmir Srinagar, March 15 Official sources said the security forces gunned down a foreign militant during a search operation at Wanidora in the frontier district of Kupwara last night. Some arms and ammunition were also recovered from the slain militant. Militants shot dead Nazir Ahmad, an alleged security force informer at Palhalan in Baramula district today. Two persons injured in the blast at Nihama in Pulwama district yesterday died at the hospital today. With this the toll in the blast has risen to four. The blast occured when villagers had gathered near a house which was damaged in an encounter earlier during the day that left two militants dead.
UNI |
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Relief for militancy victims okayed
Srinagar, March 15 These include 67 cases of death, 40 injuries and 72 of property damaged, an official spokesman said. District-level screening-cum-coordination committee headed by Baramula District Magistrate Naveen Chowdary sanctioned ex gratia relief of Rs 58 lakh in favour of 98 militancy-related cases, which included 38 death cases, an equal number of injured persons and 22 property damage cases, the spokesman said. With this the total ex gratia relief disbursed to the militancy victims so far in the district has gone up to Rs 2.95 crore. There was an allocation of Rs 4 crore earmarked for the purpose. In Kupwara Rs 60 lakh was sanctioned as ex gratia relief in favour of 29 death cases, two injured persons and 50 property damaged cases, he said.
PTI |
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