M A I N   N E W S

Woman dies in border firing

Jammu, August 25
Indian and Pakistani troops traded heavy mortar and small arms fire at several places along the Line of Control in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir killing a woman, official reports said here today.

Thirty-year-old Soma Kumari was killed at Meenka Mahadev village as the Pakistani troops targeted several areas with mortar shells in Bhawani sector of the district yesterday.

The Indian troops retaliated and the exchange of mortar shelling between the two sides continued throughout the night, the reports said.

Heavy exchange of firing took place at Khosi, Kalal and Changar in the district.

The Pakistani troops used artillery fire against forward Indian defence locations in Dras sector last night to which the Indian troops retaliated, the reports said.

Light arms’ intermittent exchange of firing was reported along the international border at Kanachak Beli Azmat, Gole Pattan Chinore Farm, Dera Napo, Pargwal and Pallanwala in Jammu district and Pansar and Rathua in Kathua district last night.

SRINAGAR: Seven militants and a Special Police Officer were among seven persons killed, while the Army averted a major tragedy with the timely detection of a 30-kg improvised explosive device in Jammu and Kashmir since Saturday, a police spokesman said on Sunday.

Three militants were killed in a fierce encounter with a joint search party of the Army and Special Operations Group at Kralpora-Kachahama forest in the border district of Kupwara in North Kashmir on Sunday, the spokesman said. Two other militants were killed at Bandi Kama Khon.

He said three AK assault rifles, seven magazines with 120 rounds, a wireless set, four grenades were recovered from the killed militants.

In another encounter two ultras belonging to the Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami were killed by the security forces at Gujjarnagar Behak in Chachiyah area of Doda district in Jammu region on Sunday. A large number of arms and ammunition were recovered from them, the spokesman said.

He said militants shot dead a Special Police Officer, Mohammad Ashraf, at Shopian chowk in Pulwama district of South Kashmir on Sunday.

Ashraf, a resident of Udhampur, was posted at Shopian police station and was on duty when militants killed him. PTI

Pak not subverting J&K poll: envoy

Islamabad, August 25
Pakistan’s acting High Commissioner in New Delhi, Jalil Abbas Jeelani, today said his country was neither helping nor encouraging anyone to subvert the forth coming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.

“Pakistan is neither helping nor encouraging anyone to subvert the elections which President Pervez Musharraf has described as a farce,” he was quoted as saying by a Pakistani daily.

In another development, taking strong exception to “unwarranted allegations” of attack on Pakistani army posts on Thursday, India accused Pakistan of trying to divert world attention from its involvement in cross-border terrorism by levelling these charges.

In an indirect reference, India said the allegations were timed to coincide with the visit of US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage to the region.

In the reply, handed over to the Pakistan Foreign Office last evening, India said the allegations that the Indian Army and Air Force launched an unprovoked attack two days ago on Pakistani defence posts in Dras sector had been verified by Indian officials and found to be wrong. PTI