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Thursday,
August 14, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Security beefed up for
Independence
Day
Fidayeen attacks against Islam, asserts
Dehlavi |
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BJP flays Jethmalani’s remarks CPM hails Pervez’s offer of
ceasefire Mehbooba for Hizbul say in
talks Kashmiri Pandits say no to
Salahuddin’s call Youth killed in BSF
firing New cure for high-altitude
sickness
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Security beefed up for Independence
Day Jammu, August 13 The BSF and the CRPF personnel had also been deployed in strength and preventive detentions were being made to prevent any untoward incident. Army personnel were seen this morning on important roads. The mini stadium, near the police control room here, and the Bakshi stadium at Srinagar had been sealed and police personnel were scanning every inch of the stadiums with metal detectors. With terrorist strikes at two places in the Kashmir valley today, the authorities were not taking any chance as such incidents would embarrass the position of the state government. The Director-General of Police,Mr Gopal Sharma, reviewed the security arrangements here as well as in the districts bordering Pakistan. Mr Sharma flew to Doda,Rajouri and Poonch districts and emphasised the need for making adequate security arrangements. He asked the DIGs and SSPs concerned to prepare a contingency plan to respond effectively in case of eventuality. The authorities had already taken several steps for night dominance, securing peripheral areas of major towns and security venues. |
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Fidayeen attacks against Islam, asserts Dehlavi Srinagar, August 13 “Islam is a religion of peace and the fidayeen attacks are totally against the teaching of this great religion,’’ Mr Dehlavi told mediapersons here. Replying to a question on the September 11 attacks in the USA , he said “AMeR did not approve the attacks as the act was against Islam.’’ He said it was inappropriate to call the militants, who indulged in these acts, as martyrs. He said insurgency in the valley was not a jehad. Instead of engaging in a bloodbath, the militants should launch a jehad against poverty and hunger. Disagreeing with People’s Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti’s demand to hold talks with the Hizbul Mujahideen, he said the Centre should not enter into a dialogue process with militant outfits till they laid down their arms. He said the call by the Hizbul Mujahideen to Kashmiri Pandits and other migrants to return to Kashmir was a welcome step. Mr Dehlavi flayed the Centre for ignoring the martyrs of the Kargil war on the third Vijay Divas. —
UNI |
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BJP flays Jethmalani’s remarks Jammu, August 13 In a statement here today, Prof Hari Om, spokesman of the BJP, accused Mr Jethmalani of defaming India in an alien country by describing the Gujarat riots and demolition of the Babri Masjid in most “lurid colours” in order to paint the Hindus black. He described as “outrageous” the remarks of Mr Jethmalani against the Vajpayee-led NDA government and demanded that the activities of Mr Jethmalani should be closely monitored. Prof Hari Om said that J&K was an integral part of India and this had been accepted in the Constitution of the state which was framed in 1957 by pro-semi Independence Constituent Assembly of the National Conference. J&K became an integral part of India on the day when Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession and linked the fate of the state with New Delhi. |
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CPM hails Pervez’s offer of ceasefire Srinagar, August 13 “Pakistan President’s proposal for a ceasefire on the LoC, no doubt, deserves a positive response. But in order that the peace process is carried forward in a meaningful and fruitful manner, the guns booming in this part of the LoC have to be silenced,” party’s secretary in the state, Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami said here. In order that the urge for peace takes concrete shape, a ceasefire has to be called here to avoid further bloodletting which alone can create a conducive atmosphere in the region for a purposeful dialogue and negotiations, Mr Tarigami said. —
PTI |
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Mehbooba for Hizbul say in
talks Srinagar, August 13 Addressing a public meeting at Uri near the LoC in north Kashmir, Ms Mehbooba Mufti said that Indo-Pakistan talks and involvement of the Hurriyat Conference would not bear fruit till Hizb cadres did not participate in an honourable solution to Kashmir issue. Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin on Monday appealed to migrant Kashmiri Pandits to return to the valley and participate in the “freedom struggle” of Kashmiris, as Pandits were part and parcel of Kashmir. He added that a wrong impression had been given that its cadres were responsible for the killings of non-Muslims. Syed Salahuddin claimed that a number of non-Muslims were among its cadres, and several others were supporting its cause. Supporting the opening of the Uri-Rawalpindi road, Ms Mehbooba said that this would be a step forward for finding solution to the Kashmir problem. She said this would lead to normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan and create an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding , besides improving the trade and commerce. |
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Kashmiri Pandits say no to Salahuddin’s call Jammu, August 13 “It is a trap laid by the Hizbul Mujahideen chief at the behest of Pakistan’s ISI to use Pandits in Kashmir after their return, against India,” said Mr Hira Lal Chatta, general secretary, All-State Kashmiri Pandit Conference. “Salahuddin, who has advocated Nizam-e-Mustafa (Islamic rule) and merger of Kashmir with Pakistan, will not be allowed to succeed in his designs,” Mr Chatta said, adding that Salahuddin should lay down the gun publicly, give up the call for Islamic rule in the valley and apologise for the killings of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley. “A deserter, Salahuddin, who fought elections under the Indian Constitution in 1986-87, has no right to make such statements about Kashmiri Pandits, who are aborigines of Kashmir, Indians and patriotic to the core,” Mr Chatta said. In a similar vein, the chairman of the Panun Kashmir, Dr Ajay Charangoo, asked if Salahuddin had given up his aim of striving for Islamic rule in the valley. “It is a tactical statement and is nothing new, but a trap for Pandits,” he said, adding that Salahuddin should first fix responsibility for the killing of Kashmiri Pandits, who were patriotic and nationalists. “There is no change of heart and the statement is to hoodwink the international community”, Dr Charangoo said. The state BJP chief, Dr Nirmal Singh, said it was a non-serious statement and there were no takers for it among Pandits, who could not return to the valley under this situation. “There is no freedom struggle in Kashmir and even the Hurriyat has stopped talking about it. They too want peace in Kashmir now,” he said. The convener of the Panun Kashmir, Dr Agnishekar, said the community had been driven out of the valley by the Hizbul Mujahideen, headed by Salahuddin. He added, “Asking them to return and join the freedom struggle against India and its secular ethos is ridiculous and absurd.” Rejecting the idea, another senior leader, Dr K.L. Chowdary said the people of Kashmir had rejected terrorism in the valley by participating in the democratic exercise. Other organisations that rejected Salahuddin’s call were the J&K Shiv Sena, the All-India the Kashmiri Pandit Conference, the Kashmiri Hindu Migrants Committee, the J&K Vichar Manch and the VHP. —
PTI |
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Youth killed in BSF firing Jammu, August 13 The BSF troops noticed a group of youths moving on the banks of the Basanter river in Samba sector around 10.30 p.m. yesterday. As they fired illuminating lights to get a better view of the area, the youths ran helter-skelter, forcing the troops to open fire. The firing resulted in the death of 18-year-old Romy, alias Latti, of the nearby Pagdore village and injuries to another youth, the sources said. Pakistani troops also resorted to firing in the nearby Gallar area of Samba sector. Indian troops fired in retaliation. —
PTI |
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New cure for high-altitude
sickness Jammu, August 13 Assisted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Leh-based HAMRC has designed and developed a new treatment modality using nitric oxide and oxygen for the treatment of HAPE patients, the sources said. “The treatment also includes the indigenous development of a nitric oxide delivery system to be used at extreme and remote high-altitude areas anywhere across the country”, they said. —
PTI |
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400-year-old temple set on fire Baderwah, August 13 The temple dedicated to snake god Subernag was set ablaze around 2.30 am in Subernag Ridge, they said, adding that the shrine was gutted. Soon after the news spread, shopkeepers downed their shutters in Baderwah town in protest, resulting in tension. Police and security forces have been rushed to the area, Army and police personnel are patrolling the sensitive areas of the town. —
PTI |
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