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Friday,
July 12, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Omar
softens stand on Governor’s rule CPM for
Governor’s rule in J&K Jaish
‘commander’ shot |
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Maize may
put securitymen in maze Mock
security drill ahead of yatra Transporters’
strike enters 3rd day 40 kg of
charas seized, 1 held
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Omar softens stand on Governor’s rule
Srinagar, July 11 “JKPCC president Ghulam Nabi Azad now is begging for support from the Hurriyat Conference, ignoring that the 23-party amalgam has been a stooge of Pakistan and active abettor of militancy,” Omar told a public meeting in Gool and Mahore areas of Udhampur district yesterday. Omar, who also heads the National Conference, said such opportunism spoke of low political depths and asked the Pradesh Congress chief (Azad) to quit his Rajya Sabha seat that he won with the support of the National Conference. He said the NC supported Azad at such a juncture when he was almost deserted by his parent organisation. “Now morality demands that he should quit the seat won with our support and only then challenge the National Conference,” he added. Spelling out the policies and programmes of the National Conference, Omar said it had a track record of public service and its workers had offered supreme sacrifices in steering the state to peace and normalcy which had been disturbed during the peak of militancy. “Like fighting the elements inimical to peace, the National Conference is prepared to take on its adversaries who have ganged up against the premier political party of the state that has massive support in all three regions of Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh,” Omar said. On the demand for trifurcation, he vowed that the division of the state on communal lines would not be allowed saying that Jammu and Kashmir presented a unique blend of cultural ethos and communal amity that was a bright symbol of India’s unity in diversity. The demand of trifurcation was against the very spirit of country’s secular fabric, he said, adding that it was highly detrimental to the national interest. Omar Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections would be held in October as scheduled and ruled out Governor’s rule ahead of elections unless amendment to this effect was made in Constitution. “The polls would be held in first week of October and the new government should be in place by 13th of the same month,” Omar, who is also president of the National Conference, said addressing party supporters on the second death anniversary of Madr-e-Meherbaan Begum Abdullah. “We do not support any deferment in the poll process. Let the Centre hold elections at the time of their choice and the NC will still emerge victorious,” he said. Lashing out at those advocating Governor’s rule in the state, Omar said “do they question the free and fair nature of all elections not held under Governor’s rule?” “We are ready to contest polls under the Governor’s rule also as we believe we have a mass support base. But there should be an amendment to the Constitution to this effect and polls in other states like Gujarat should also be held under similar dispensation,” he said. Omar said there would be no “trading’ with the Centre over the issue of Governor’s rule as it was the mandate of people that had brought the National Conference to power. “We have earned our respect among people. It has not been bestowed upon us by the Centre or the gun-power,” he added.
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CPM for Governor’s rule in J&K Srinagar, July 11 Addressing a press conference, Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami, MLA, and state secretary of the CPM lashed out at the NDA government. He criticised the demand for trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir by some groups. He urged the Election Commission to exercise its authority and devise a mechanism to ensure free and fair elections in the state. The CPM leader urged the Centre to give a political and economic package to Jammu and Kashmir prior to the elections and proposed a five-point programme with the initiation of a purposeful dialogue. |
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Jaish ‘commander’ shot
Srinagar, July 11 A BSF spokesman said that troops of 54 Battalion detected 10 kg of improvised explosive device (IED) around 8.15 a.m. today during a routine patrol and immediately alerted bomb disposal squad, which defused the device. An official spokesman said a security force patrol party came under heavy fire from militants at Sogam woods, about 103 km from here, early today. Troops retaliated and in the shootout, two militants were killed. He said two soldiers also lost their lives and two others were wounded in the clash. Two AK rifles, six magazines, 38 rounds, four grenades and one wireless belonging to the militants were also seized. In yet another encounter at Kramboora Rajwar in the frontier district of Kupwara a self-styled district commander of JeM, Bilal Ahmad, and a soldier were killed and another jawan was injured. One AK rifle, two magazines, 38 rounds, two grenades and one wireless set were recovered after the encounter. A JeM militant and a soldier were killed in an encounter at Tota Gali Gusai while body of Jamal Din was recovered at Hari last night. Militants shot dead a counter insurgent, Tariq Ahmad Dar, at Ghat Palhalan in Baramula district this afternoon. Two civilians were also injured in the firing. Unidentified gunmen shot dead a student, Mohammad Ashraf Dar, at Warpora Pattan on Thursday while another person, Mohammad Din, was shot at and wounded at Pathri Bandi. Two employees of Kamraz Rural Bank’s Dooru Sopore branch who were carrying Rs 2,00,000 were shot at and the money robbed. One of them was injured in the attack.
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Maize may put securitymen in maze Jammu, July 11 The reason: the tall maize plants in the sprawling fields provide a natural hideout to militants. One can imagine the danger to security personnel when there is a full growth of maize plants in Rajouri where the crop is grown on over 3,000 hectares. Defence Ministry sources said these fields were “virtually a death-trap for security personnel.” Over the years, the security forces have discovered that militants had been hiding in the maize fields from where they manage to lay ambushes and even open fire on the patrol parties. “We have lost many personnel who were hit by either bullets or ambushed by the militants,” said a police officer. “The thick and tall plants do not allow our men to spot the movement of militants within the maize fields from a distance,” the officer said, adding that “it becomes highly risky if they enter the maize fields for a manhunt”. Search operations in the fields had usually been a double-edged weapon, explained another police officer. He said during such
operations, ripe maize fields were destroyed and “we invite the wrath of the farmers. Moving inside the fields could trap my men in mine or IED explosions”, he said. He said “we have to be careful. We cannot open fire on seeing movement in the fields because we do not know if those seen from a distance are militants or farmers. And if a farmer gets killed, we lose the support and cooperation of the villagers. Asked whether sensors or the thermal-imaging system would be installed to check the movement of militants in the maize fields, the Defence Ministry sources said “the sensors and the thermal-imaging devices are meant to spot infiltrators.” He said the sensors or the thermal imaging devices would not distinguish a militant from an innocent civilian moving in the fields. He said “we have to bank on specific information from the farmers whenever we plan to flush out militants hiding in maize fields.” |
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Mock security drill ahead of yatra Jammu, July 11 The security forces reacted instantly. About 100 passengers and coolies watched the mock 10-minute security exercise carried out under the supervision of the DIG (Crime and Railways), Dr S.P. Vaid. Police sources said the mock exercise was part of the drill that was under way to ensure incident-free Amarnath pilgrimage which would start from Jammu from July 19. The sources said mock exercise would continue. The police said additional companies of the police and paramilitary forces, besides the Army had been deployed at strategic spots along the Jammu-Pahalgam highway. Security personnel and commandos would be deployed on the railway station in Jammu,
bus stands and on the route between Jammu and Pahalgam. Senior police authorities said though militants especially the Hizbul Mujahideen ones, had said they would not attack “unarmed pilgrims” some foreign mercenaries, according to field reports, were preparing for an attack. |
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Transporters’ strike enters 3rd day Srinagar, July 11 The government and representatives of various transport organisations failed to reach any agreement on the hike in fares, which led to the suspension of the transport services in the valley. A day-long meeting of representatives from both sides failed to yield any results. While the transporters blamed the authorities for the failure of talks, the civil administration officers here claimed that the representatives did not turn up for discussions to end the stalemate today. According to a representative of the transporters, a meeting of its office-bearers is scheduled to be held here tomorrow to take up the issue with the administration. Attendance in educational institutions and government offices has remained thin during the past three days due to the strike. Most of the private schools operating in Srinagar city have closed down. A large number of passengers remained stranded in the city and elsewhere. The markets were deserted and many shops remained closed. Those joining the strike included the bus operators on inter-district routes, city bus services, Tata Sumo services on various inter-district routes and autorickshaws. Of the 20,000 passenger vehicles, at least 2200 vehicles are off the roads in Srinagar city only, according to Mr G.M. Bhat, general secretary of the Kashmir Passengers Welfare Transport Association. In order to overcome the problems being faced by the general public, the government has pressed about 170 State Road Transport Corporation (SRTC) buses into service. “In case of an emergency, the administration will arrange vehicles from Jammu and neighbouring states,” said Mr Abdul Hameed, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar. He said the transporters’ strike was unjustified and causing problems to general public. Reacting to the reports of stone pelting on some SRTC buses in interiors of the city, the Deputy Commissioner said action was being taken against those guilty. |
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40 kg of charas seized, 1 held Jammu, July 11 They said the truck was on its way from Anantnag to New Delhi when it was intercepted by a police party at Kud in Udhampur district last evening. The police seized 40 kg of charas and arrested the truck driver, Mohammad Shafi Jaro of Khanabal in Anantnag.
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Union Minister of State for
External Affairs Omar Abdullah has decried the Congress for seeking
Hurriyat support in the next Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections and
described it as nothing but “political opportunism”.
In video: Voters in Jammu and Kashmir to cast their votes through
the EVM—Electronic Voting Machines. (
