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Thursday,
June 26, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Home
Guards lathicharged
BSF
rescues boy, busts militant hideout Pak
refuses to join mela |
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Kalam to
visit Vaishno Devi today Panthers
Party threatens stir on districts’ issue Sinha
tours Jammu areas Brown
sugar worth Rs 70 lakh seized
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Home Guards lathicharged
Srinagar, June 25 Over 300 personnel attached with Home Guard assembled at Sher-e-Kashmir park in the heart of the city shortly before noon and marched towards the secretariat in support of their demands, they said. However, the police intercepted the volunteers near the heavily guarded secretariat and asked them to disperse. As they were adamant to meet the Chief Minister and blocked the road, the police fired teargas shells and resorted to lathicharge to disperse them, sources said, adding that several volunteers were injured. Sources said nine of them, were taken into preventive custody for violating prohibitory orders. The state government had formed the voluntary force a few years ago and volunteers were being paid a monthly stipend. The Home Guards alleged that they were being paid less than Rs 500 per month for the past 10-12 years. They further charged that they were used during the Assembly and parliamentary polls after promising a permanent job, and added that the government had failed to address their problems despite a number of representations to the higher authorities.
PTI, UNI |
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BSF rescues boy, busts militant hideout
Srinagar, June 25 He said troops of 42 Battalion had sealed Kakarkhal village near Charar-e-Sharief, late last night following a tip-off that a 13-year-old boy, Syed Faizan Indrabi, kidnapped by the militants from Zadoora Pulwama, was being kept there. When the troops were sealing the area, militants holed up in a building escaped under the cover of darkness leaving the boy behind. BSF Commandant Narender Singh told mediapersons at Charar-e-Sharief that after failing to get youths, the militant organisations were recruiting small boys for carrying out militant activities in the valley. “I wanted to be a doctor, but Jaish militants wanted me to join them,’’ the rescued boy said. Troops of 8th Battalion also busted another JeM militant hideout at Chak village in south Kashmir district of Pulwama. One rocket launcher, an anti-tank rocket shell, about 100 rounds of ammunition and one explosive device with electric detonators were recovered from the hideout, Mr Narender Singh said. Militants shot dead a civilian on the charge of him being an informer of security forces while a timber smuggler was injured in an incident of firing by security forces in the Kashmir valley today, official sources said. The bullet-riddled body of Mohammad Hussain was recovered by the police from Wagbal village in Kupwara district of north Kashmir, the sources said. They said the victim was kidnapped and later killed by the ultras. A timber smuggler identified as Hilal Hussain Yatoo was seriously injured when security forces opened fire on observing suspicious movement at Hayatpora in Badgam district of central Kashmir in the wee hours today, the sources said. They said Yatoo was carrying wood on his horse when he entered into an ambush laid by the security forces for militants in the village. He was asked to stop but he tried to escape and was shot at, resulting in injuries to him. Security forces shot dead a militant in an encounter at Gulbagarh Lalu Khatar last night. One AK rifle, five magazines, 60 rounds, one UBGL with two grenades, 1 kg RDX, 10 detonators, two hand grenades and one wireless set were recovered from the slain militant. The body of a Hizbul Mujahideen militant Mohammad Akbar Bhat was recovered at Katardhar Gandoh in Doda district last evening.
UNI, PTI |
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Pak refuses to join mela Chambaliyal, June 25 “Pakistan has refused to be part of the 300-year-old joint Indo-Pak mela celebrated at the Chambaliyal border outpost (BOP) on the international border (IB) in memory of revered saint of Muslims, Hindus as well as Sikhs, Chambliyal Baba, annually on June 26”, a senior BSF official told this correspondent here today. Not only this, the Pakistan army and the Rangers had also refused to accept holy water and “shakkar and sharbat” as prasad for people of Pakistan and in return they will not be offering “chaddar” at the samadhi of Baba, an annual practice for the past 300 years, he said. There were three flag meetings with Pakistani counterparts during the past one week, the last one being yesterday in this connection, he said and added at all these flag meetings at Chambliyal, Pakistan officials declined to get involved in the mela. “However, they have assured us that there would be no firing from their side on the shrine and the surrounding areas during the mela”, the official said and added “though we have reasons to believe our Pakistan counterparts, we are taking all precautionary measures, including security of pilgrims”. During the past six years from 1997, except 2001, Pakistan did not take part in the joint mela. They did not accept “shakkar and sharbat” nor sent “chaddar” for Baba’s samadhi. However in 2001, a big mela was celebrated “jointly”. But in 2002, not only was the mela disrupted from the Pakistan side, but also it was shifted from the Baba’s samadhi to 5 km inside Dug village due to buildup on the border, Chambiliyal shopkeeper Chuni Lal said. “We are happy that at least the fair is being held at its
original place — the shrine of Baba Chambliyal”, he said.
PTI |
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Kalam to visit Vaishno Devi today Jammu, June 25 He is the first President of the country to visit all three regions, Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh in a single tour of the state. He will also offer prayers at Hazarat Bal shrine in Srinagar. Mr Abdul Kalam has not forgotten the children who are the worst sufferers of terrorism in the state and has made it a point to meet them in all three regions. He is scheduled to present colours to the J&K police at Udhampur tomorrow morning and then meet a group of children invited to Raj Bhavan here. Thereafter, the President will be the chief guest at the special convocation of the Jammu university. Mr Abdul Kalam has also spared some time for the scientists and will visit the Regional Research Laboratory of the CSIR here after returning from a migrant camp of Kashmiri Pandits at Muthi. Governor Lt Gen. (retd.) S.K. Sinha and Chief Minister, Mufti Sayeed, will call on him in the evening. He will fly to Leh on June 27 and visit some places of historical interest, including a Buddhist Gompa. The President has a hectic schedule at Srinagar where he will stay for two days. First of all he will visit the software technology park and thereafter hold a discussion on the economic development of the state and steps to quicken it. He will fly to a forward post at Uri near the Line of Control between India and Pakistan. He will visit the girls’ college and the Delhi Public School at Srinagar. He will also meet the legislators before returning to Delhi on June 28. |
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Panthers Party threatens stir on districts’ issue
Jammu, June 25 A 10-member delegation of the party, including its four legislators, plans to reach PoK before August 1 this year, JKNPP Chairman, Bhim Singh, told reporters here. “Our delegation will interact with the Muslim Conference leaders and legislators of PoK to find ways and means of resolving the Kashmir crisis”, he said, adding “India and Pakistan cannot resolve the Kashmir issue without the participation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir even if they fight 10 wars more”. Asked whether the delegation would also visit Pakistan, Mr Bhim Singh said “that country is a trespasser and has illegally occupied part of Jammu and Kashmir and thus a visit there does not arise”. Mr Bhim Singh said he would also invite the Muslim Conference leaders of PoK to visit Jammu and Kashmir for broader interaction with the people. Referring to the Hurriyat Conference, he said it mattered little to him whether Hurriyat leaders accompanied him or not. He said that his party had decided to take to the streets if the coalition government headed by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed did not initiate measures for implementing the demilitarisation commission and the Wazir Commission recommendations on formation of districts by October 17. He said that the Wazir Commission had recommended district status for Bandipore in Kashmir valley, besides the formation of three districts of Kishtwar, Reasi and Samba in Jammu division. However, he refused to spell out whether his party would withdraw support to the ruling coalition if the JKNPP’s demands were not fulfilled. The JKNPP Chairman also said that he had given six months to the state government to implement its order for equitable distribution of relief to the militancy-affected people who had migrated from Doda, Reasi, Poonch and Rajouri on a par with those of border migrants. He said that he would again move the apex court on July 8 when the state government would have to face contempt proceedings.
PTI |
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Sinha tours Jammu areas Jammu, June 25 Gen Sinha visited eight different formation headquarters of the Army as also the headquarters of the BSF and stressed the need for foiling attempts by militants while making every effort to win the hearts and minds of the
people, official sources said. The Governor was briefed by Army on the recently concluded Hill Kaka operation. The Governor carried out an aerial survey of the area of operation and complimented the Army for its work in the difficult terrain while inflicting maximum causalities on the militants. While visiting Kashmiri Pandits’ Migrant Camps in Jammu and border migrants’ camp in Akhnoor, the Governor assured the migrants that he would do his best to bring about improvement in their living conditions.
PTI |
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Brown sugar worth Rs 70 lakh seized Srinagar, June 25 Shergarhi Station House Officer (SHO) Sohail Ahmad told reporters today that on specific information that some smugglers were trying to sell brown sugar to college students, the police monitored the movement of some suspicious people. "It was after a long wait that the police arrested two persons with 600 gm of brown sugar worth Rs 70 lakh in the international market near the college," he said. He identified the arrested persons as Mohammad Ilyas and Mohammad Yahya, residents of Tangdhar in the frontier north Kashmir district of Kupwara. Mr Ahmad said an FIR had been filed in this regard and they had been booked under Section 20 of the NDPS Act. He said the interrogation of the two was in progress. The police would be conducting more raids in various places to arrest their accomplices. "This was the second drugs haul by the police in the city during the past one week," he added. Earlier in a similar raid at the Hyderpora bypass, two smugglers, also from north Kashmir, were arrested and brown
sugar worth Rs 50 lakh seized.
UNI |
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