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Padgaonkar gets Omar’s support on Pak’s role in J&K
Chittisinghpura Massacre
Turmoil has hit development: Omar
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Omar should read his grandpa’s autobiography: Soz
Anniversary of Kabaili Attack
Student leader’s Murder
2 cops, schoolgirl hurt in
stone-throwing
Appointment of interlocutors
2 Hizbul supporters nabbed in Reasi
Army protests ceasefire violation
Traffic chaos mark Karva Chauth eve
Shifting of Bus Stand
Seminar on crystallography begins
In-laws allowed to cremate woman
Students apprised of commercial floriculture
Bodies of boy, girl handed over to families
39 booked for food adulteration
2 burglars held
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Padgaonkar gets Omar’s support on Pak’s role in J&K
Srinagar, October 25 The team comprising Dileep Padgaonkar, Information Commissioner MM Ansari and academician Prof Radha Kumar, discussed political, economic, security, governance and other related issues with the Governor. The Chief Minister, who had a detailed meeting with the interlocutors at his residence here this afternoon, discussed the prevailing situation in the state in the wake of the recent turmoil in which at least 111 persons had been killed since June 11. Omar supported Padgaonkar’s viewpoint on the involvement of Pakistan in the “political settlement” of Kashmir. Padgaonkar had commented on Saturday that there was need to involve Pakistan in the resolution of the issue. The comment has been criticised by the BJP, which had earlier also sharply reacted to the speech of the Chief Minister in the state Assembly on October 6, in which he had referred to the accession of Kashmir to India. The recent turmoil, which continues for the past 137 days, with the issuance of protest calendars by the hardline APHC, had led to all-party meetings by Omar Abdullah here and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi. An all-party Parliamentary delegation was also sent here on a two-day visit on September 20 and 21, which held a series of meetings with various sections of society and political parties. Some of the members had also called on the separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and the JKLF chairman, Mohammad Yasin Malik. While the team has been engaged in meeting cross-sections of people in the Valley since it arrived here on a four-day visit, the separatists had boycotted and appealed to different sections of society to boycott the meeting. The team on its next leg is scheduled to visit Jammu as part of its initial talks with various sections of society.
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Chittisinghpura Massacre
Jammu, October 25
He identified Muzzamil, an LeT militant, as part of the group who carried out the killings apparently to create communal tension just before Clinton’s visit, news reports appearing today claimed. Karamjeet Singh, a government schoolteacher, said he was relieved as the mystery was over. “We always believed it was a ploy to create tension, but the Sikhs and the Muslims have been living peacefully since ages in the Valley and the absence of any backlash proves our brotherhood”. Talking to The Tribune, he said he would finally be able to tell his younger daughter, Raman, about who carried out the killings and why they fled Kashmir after the killings and lived in Jammu. “Raman was just two years’ old then. I shifted to Jammu after the killings. There was too much of panic. She keeps asking me why were Sikhs killed. She has started asking more questions now when US President Barack Obama is visiting India, and there are similar fears of militant attacks,” he added. Karamjeet recalls the horrifying late evening of March 20 when he was posted in the Valley and was returning home in Chittisinghpura after fetching milk. “I was stopped by some persons who claimed they were soldiers. They said the village was being searched, as there was information about a terrorist attack. They made many men of the village sit on the ground,” he said. He claimed he got an intuition of something terribly wrong with the situation and escaped. “Minutes later, they fired at the assembled Sikhs, killing 36 of them on the spot,” he added. Nanak Singh, another survivor, who was injured with a gunshot piercing his left leg, while talking to The Tribune over the phone, said, the Indian government should investigate further and tell why innocent Sikhs were targeted? “US President Barack Obama is coming now. One visit of a US President brought misery in the form of the killings. The Indian government should get hold of Headley for knowing about the crime or try to catch those militants who carried out the killings,” he added.
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Turmoil has hit development: Omar
“Creating a law and order situation in persuasion of political issues and hampering development is in no way in the interest of the people and the state,” he said. The Chief Minister was addressing a function after laying the foundation stone of a Rs 24-crore Udyog Bhawan at Bemina here today. He said it was most unfortunate for the Valley that five months of law and order situation had put the entire economic development on a standstill. “We could not spend funds on schemes as per schedule. As a result, the huge macadamisation programme in Srinagar city and towns received a setback. Progress on the infrastructure development in the sectors of health, education, roads, water supply, power, industry, etc also got hampered,” he said. The Chief Minister said with the approval of Rs 6,500-crore Annual Plan by the Centre for the state, the Valley could have been put on a fast track. “But unfortunately a situation was created that hindered the progress and put obstacles in the way of implementing schemes,” he maintained. Omar said his endeavour of bringing outside investors and business houses to the Valley for starting ventures got a setback. He stated that as per an estimate, about 50,000 people were rendered jobless due to the law and order situation in the Valley during the past five months.
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Omar should read his grandpa’s autobiography: Soz
He said the decision was also endorsed by Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who represented the will of the people of the state at that time. However, the PCC chief sought to downplay statements given by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and External Affairs Minister SM Krishna. He advised Omar to minutely study the autobiography of his grandfather, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who was fondly called Sher-e-Kashmir by the people of the Valley. Addressing a convention of Congress workers, Soz quoted some books and documents to clear the party’s stand on the accession, but avoided directly confronting the Chief Minister on the issue. In a reference towards Omar’s speech in the Legislative Assembly, Soz admitted that Congress workers had been asking him about the Constitutional relations of the state with the Union of India. “Like other more than 500 states, Jammu and Kashmir also acceded to the Union of India after the then ruler of the state, Maharaja Hari Singh, singed the Instrument of Accession,” he said. Soz added that the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had asked the Maharaja to get his decision endorsed by Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. “Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah had also endorsed the decision of Maharaja Hari Singh,” Soz said.
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Anniversary of Kabaili Attack
Jammu, October 25 “We had been running since the intervening night of October 21 when the tribal attack (Kabaili attack) took place. I was 17-year-old then. I remember we were trapped in a forest with the tribals all set to capture us,” recalls Harnam, who refused to be photographed. “Women were lined up and shot at by a group led by my father, the only person having a rifle. Many women, including my mother, died on the spot,” she said. Jameet Singh, 75, a resident of Nanak Nagar, nodded in affirmation. “Yes, this happened,” he said. Shuchwant Singh, another senior resident of the city, who was part of another group hidden nearby, endorsed the claims saying “Yes, the killing of our own women happened. I remember it.” Miraculously, both of his teenage daughters, Kulwant Kaur and Harnam Kaur, in spite of being shot at, escaped death as they got buried under the pile of corpses. However, minutes later all men in the cavalcade were butchered by the Kabailis and both girls were captured. “We used to live in Kotli before the attack. When my father and others fired at us. My sister and I were critically injured and we fell unconscious. I suffered a gunshot in the head while Kulwant was injured in the neck, besides she suffered sword cuts all over the body,” she said. “Next day when we regained our senses, we were in the captivity of Kabailis. We were taken to a refugee camp in Muzaffarabad. Thereafter, we kept shuttling from one camp to another in Pakistan. One year thereon, we reached Jammu and our uncle discovered us,” she added. However, every woman was not as lucky as they were. Many of them were forcibly abducted and married to people from other community. They were forced to change their religion and names and were now living in the PoK. However, as they say blood is thicker than water, despite being separated by borders and religion, they share the same bond with their relatives settled in various parts of India. Harbans Kaur, now Qasim Jaan, lost all her family members during the upheaval. Her cousin, Jameet Singh, who lives in Nanak Nagar, said, “I survived because I was in Srinagar at that time, but all my family members died. Thereafter, to meet my relatives, I had been to the PoK twice.” He added that his love for the birthplace did not subside over
the years. Balwant Kaur, now Jameela, is another cousin of Jameet Singh, who has been living in the PoK. “They keep on writing letters, besides making telephone calls,” said Jameet’s wife Harnam Kaur,
who accompanied Jameet on his visits. |
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Student leader’s Murder
Jammu, October 25 Ali, a resident of Dhani Dar village, was beaten to death by some persons of his rival political faction near the water filtration plant on Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University Road on October 5 when he was returning home on his motorcycle after celebrating his election victory. Blaming the police for its inaction and demanding the immediate arrest of the accused, a large number of students today blocked the Gujjar Mandi road for about an hour. However, they dispersed later following an assurance from the police that swift action would be taken against the accused. Earlier, the town witnessed a large number of protests and educational institutions remained closed for three days. But with today’s protest tension gripped the area once again. The four absconding accused are Sahil and Shakoor Khan, Manjoor Khan and Salim Khan, residents of Dhani Dar village. Sahil, Shakoor and Manjoor are brothers of a patwari, Mohammad Afzal, who was earlier arrested with his two sons, Naseem Khan and Tufail Shah. Two Class XII students, Sanam Shah and Sameer, were also arrested by the police in this regard. Sub-Inspector Jaan Mohammad, holding the charge of SHO, Rajouri police station, said, “We have collected ample evidences against the accused and have also arrested seven out of the 11 accused. The remaining four accused would be arrested in a short period.” A case under Section 302 of CrPC has been registered at Rajouri police station in this regard.
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2 cops, schoolgirl hurt in
stone-throwing
Srinagar, October 25 The police said a girl student of Class I was injured when protesters pelted stones at a school bus in Humahama Chowk on the city outskirts in Budgam district this afternoon. Two police personnel were injured in a stone-throwing incident in the main town of Sopore in Baramulla district. In a similar incident at Cement Bridge, Baramulla, miscreants tried to disrupt peace by resorting to stone-throwing. Both attempts were foiled and the miscreants were chased away, the police said. Protesters pelted stones at the security forces deployed in the vicinity of an examination centre at Unisoo in Kupwara district. However, they were chased away. Life was partially affected across the Valley in response to the bandh call given by the hardline APHC spearheading the agitation. |
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Appointment of interlocutors
“The main aim of sending the interlocutors to meet people in Kashmir is to divert the attention from the Kashmir issue ahead of US President Barrack Obama’s visit to India early next month,” Geelani told mediapersons at his Hyderpora residence here today. This would give a different impression to the visiting US President while in India, he said, reiterating the appeal to students, jailed youths, traders and transporters to boycott meeting the visiting interlocutors. Geelani expressed apprehension that the government could “play a drama” ahead of Obama’s visit like that of the killing of Sikhs in Chhatisinghpora during the visit of the then US President Bill Clinton. “Even now such dramas can be played,” he commented. “We respect them (interlocutors) personally, but are against their mission as the government has rejected our five-point agenda before entering into any dialogue process,” Geelani said. “Their visit has no jurisdiction, and there is no point in meeting those in jails, as they have already put forth their views through the APHC’s five-point agenda on August 31,” he added. “Our stand on dialogue is clear and the US President may also be aware about it,” Geelani said. The APHC wanted a resolution on the basis of historical facts, he added. “We are branded as hardcore?. We are rational and willing to talk to resolve the issue on the basis of facts,” Geelani said. Referring to the incident during a seminar in New Delhi on Thursday, he said it had been done by certain “vested elements”. He added that the members of the Panun Kashmir, comprising the migrant Kashmiri Pandits, were part of the Valley, and had been forced to migrate by the then Governor, Jagmohan. “We welcome them whenever they return to their homes and places in Kashmir and treat them as our good neighbours,” Geelani assured. Geelani also issued a fresh calendar of protests for the next 10 days from October 28 to November 8 and reiterated that the protests would continue.
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2 Hizbul supporters nabbed in Reasi
Jammu, October 25 Official sources said, in a joint operation with the police, troops of Counter Insurgency Force (Uniform) apprehended two overground workers at Dubri in Mahore Tehsil of Reasi distict. These overground workers namely Shabbir Ahmed, 21, and Mohammed Ashraf, 25, both residents of Lar, were apprehended in Lower Dubri area. They were associated with Hizbul terrorist Irfaan Mushtaq, who was eliminated by security forces on October 5. Their activities was under continuous surveillance by the police and the Army. The police has registered a case under Section 212 and 216 of RPC against them for their unlawful activities. Meanwhile, terrorists of the Hizbul tanzeem, operating in Khari area of Banihal tehsil of Ramban district, narrowly escaped an ambush laid by troops of the Rashtriya Rifles and police. The incident took place in the wee hours of last evening in Mundakbas village of Khari area. Sources said Hizbul terrorist Qari Zuber, along with two associates, had come to the village to extort funds. Following a tip-off by intelligence agencies, the Army and the police laid an ambush in the general area. However, the terrorists escaped into the darkness, firing indiscriminately with complete disregard to the safety of civilian population of the village.
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Army protests ceasefire violation
Jammu, October 25 “Through hotline, we lodged a strong protest with our counterparts over ceasefire violation,” Brigadier General Staff of 16 Corps Brig Satish Dua told The Tribune. In an unwarranted act, the Pakistani troops had fired rockets, LMG and UMG rounds on Nangi Tekri forward post in Krishna Ghati sub-sector of Poonch district last evening, killing an Indian soldier More Sehdev. The soldier had sustained splinter injuries on his neck and had died while being evacuated to a hospital. “We have clearly asked the Pakistani counterparts to refrain from such unwarranted acts in future,” said Dua. The officer described the Pak misadventure as a clear case of ceasefire violation. Yesterday’s firing was the third ceasefire violation this month. On October 1 and 2, Pakistani troops had violated the mutually brokered ceasefire in the same sector when they had opened fire on Indian posts.
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Traffic chaos mark Karva Chauth eve
Jammu, October 25 Gandhi Nagar, Parade, Kacchi Chawni, Purani Mandi, Raghunath Bazaar, Pucca Danga, Jain Bazaar, Lakhdata Bazaar were the worst affected areas. At many places, the traffic came to a standstill and there was no space left for even the two-wheelers to move. Though the traffic police was present on all busy roads and crossings, its efforts to regulate the traffic proved futile. Confusion prevailed in every nook and corner of the city, as all markets were flooded with shoppers, particularly women getting henna designs done on their hands and legs.
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Shifting of Bus Stand
Udhampur, October 25 KDCC president Sher Singh confirmed this to The Tribune over phone this evening. “Since the administration stopped the preliminary work at the proposed site following the submission of a copy of the stay order obtained by us from the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, we decided to call off our stir,” he said. He added that the matter would be finally settled in the court. Sher Singh along with local MLA Baldev Raj Sharma handed the copy of the court order to the Additional Deputy Commissioner, Reasi. The business community was up in arms against the decision of the administration to shift the existing bus stand to a site behind the office of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board in the town. Though the Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, PK Pole claimed that due procedure was followed in taking the possession of the land for the proposed bus stand and that the project was in the larger interest of lakhs of pilgrims as well as the local population, the KDCC felt that the shifting of the existing bus stand would affect the local business adversely. Since Saturday last when the administration started the preliminary earthwork to lay a four-lane approach road at the new site as well as the levelling of the land, the stir had been a low key affair. But the agitators scaled it up today in a bid to put pressure on the administration to relent. A demonstration was organised at the main chowk throughout the day and the KDCC leaders claimed it to be a complete bandh. However, in the interest of the pilgrims, hotels, guest houses and lodges were exempted from the bandh. The Deputy Commissioner said the project was part of the master plan of the town as such it was above any individual’s interest. “It should be clear from the fact that the existing bus stand functions from the land measuring less than 7 kanals, whereas the new one is to come up on 418 kanals. It will also decongest the small area which gets clogged due to a large number of pilgrims visiting the shrine daily. The site is also ideal because it touches the proposed railway station likely to come up soon,” he said wondering the hue and cry over the development as more than 90 per cent owners of the land acquired for the purpose had accepted the compensation. |
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Seminar on crystallography begins
Jammu, October 25 The three-day seminar is being organised by the Department of Physics and Electronics of the varsity. Today’s function was presided over by the Vice-Chancellor of Jammu University, Prof Varun Sahni. The guests of honour were JK Dattagupta, President of the ICA; TP Singh, biotechnologist, AIIMS, New Delhi; and RA Vishwakarma, Director of the Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu. Speaking on the occasion, Rajnikant, Head of Department of Physics and Electronics, presented a brief background of the conference that is being organised for the fourth time in the varsity. He said 20 lectures would be presented by expert Indian scientists of various institutions/universities of the country and abroad. There would be 40 oral and nearly 185 poster presentations. Prof Vijayan attached great importance to the growth of crystallography activity in India.
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In-laws allowed to cremate woman
Jammu, October 25 The paternal family of the deceased had accused the in-laws of her murder. Anu Devi, 21, wife of Manu, a resident of Ghou Mahnasan, was found dead at her in-laws’ house under mysterious circumstances yesterday. The body was taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital for a post-mortem, where both families reached today. They decided that the body would be handed over to Anu’s in-laws for performing her last rites. The police also reached there and asked both families to decide who would take the body and assured them that a fair probe would be conducted into the incident. Anu’s in-laws had claimed that the girl had consumed some poisonous substance while her parents alleged that the former had killed the girl. The police has already started inquest proceedings into the incident under Section 174 of CrPC. |
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Students apprised of commercial floriculture
Udhampur, October 25 The function was the second of its kind being organised in the state so far. The programme was specially designed for students aimed at educating them about self-employment opportunities in commercial floriculture. Joint director, Department of Floriculture, Jammu, Pran Dullo, Principal of Government Degree College, Udhampur, Nutan, District Officer, Floriculture, SK Kotru, Assistant Floriculture Officer KK Sharma, staff and students of the college participated in the programme. On the occasion, senior officers of the Floriculture Department delivered lectures to make the students aware about the benefits of the Technology Mission, a centrally-sponsored scheme and the National Mission of Medicinal Plants. An interactive session followed the lectures.
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Bodies of boy, girl handed over to families
Jammu, October 25 Sub-Inspector, Jaan Mohammad, who is holding the charge of SHO Rajouri police station, said, “No suicide note was recovered from the spot and we are investigating the matter under Section 174 of the CrPC.” He said the bodies were handed over to their family members after a post-mortem at the Government Hospital, Rajouri. On the statement being given by the family members of the deceased to the police, the SHO replied, “At this moment, I can’t divulge any details. Things would be disclosed only after proper investigation, as the boy and the girl had run away from their houses a day before taking such an extreme step.” Later in the evening, the last rites of the deceased were performed by their respective families.
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39 booked for food adulteration
Jammu, October 25 During the inspection, 39 defaulters were booked under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act-1954 and the J&K Municipal Corporation Act-2000. About 220 kg of unhygienic and uncovered sweets were destroyed and about 80 kg of substandard raw materials were seized from various shops. An amount of Rs 15,500 was charged from the defaulters as fine. The team also stopped the preparation of sweets at a workshop in Lakharmandi Janipur, Jammu, which was running without a licence from a health officer.
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2 burglars held
Jammu, October 25 Aftab Ali, alias Tafi, a resident of Rajouri, and Mohammad Gafoor, a resident of Ghambir Mughlan, were arrested in this regard, the police said. Acting on the complaint of Yogveer Gupta, owner of the shop, who had alleged that some persons had burgled his shop and stolen valuable goods on September 24, the police today arrested the accused and recovered the stolen items. The items recovered included two laptops, 14 mobile phones, 10 chargers and two MP3 players. |
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Jammu, October 25
Headley has reportedly confessed to the National Investigation Agency that the LeT carried out the massacre of 36 sikhs in Chittisinghpura in Kashmir, a few days before the visit of the then US president Bill Clinton.
Srinagar, October 25
Dayalachak (Kathua),October 25
Harnam Kaur, 80, remembers the hair-raising details of the incident that took place this day 63 years ago, when her father, Daanmukh Singh, led a group of community men and killed their own mothers, daughters, sisters and wives so that the tribals could not violate their honour.
Srinagar, October 25