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NC-Congress differences come to the fore at Cabinet meeting
DG (Prisons) calls on Governor
Two soldiers injured in mine blast near LoC
British tourist’s body flown to Delhi
NC trying to cash in on Afzal ahead of polls: Mehbooba
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HC keeps demotion orders of CRPF IG in abeyance
Centre, state govt responsible for panches’ killing, says AJKPC
Governor, CM for promoting welfare of ex-servicemen
BJP leader Daya Krishan Kotwal passes away
After school bus mishap, govt to upgrade village health facilities
Court takes note of ‘illegal constructions’ in Gulmarg
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NC-Congress differences come to the fore at Cabinet meeting
Jammu, April 9 Sources said transfers of some Commissioner Secretaries and Deputy Commissioners (DCs) were also on the agenda of the Cabinet meeting but ministers of both the parties failed to arrive at a consensus. “Some Congress ministers opposed the government proposals, especially appointment of Commissioner Secretaries and DCs. So, the decisions on some postings could not take place in today’s meeting,” a source said. After the Cabinet meeting, all Congress ministers convened their own meeting separately to devise a strategy to exert pressure on the National Conference, the sources said. The differences between the two parties, which have been running the coalition government since January 5, 2009, have been widening every passing day as both parties have decided to aggressively pursue their own agendas. “As only one and half years are left for the Assembly elections, the Congress wants to implement its agenda in the government. So, party ministers have decided to assert themselves,” a source said, adding that the state unit of the Congress had also taken the party high command into confidence. In the recently held Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting, National Conference leaders had also adopted an aggressive posture. They had suggested that the party leadership should not enter into a pre-poll alliance with the Congress. National Conference leaders had complained that Congress ministers were deliberately ignoring party workers. “The way the National Conference has reiterated it demand for the return of mortal remains of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, it is a clear indication that party is going to aggressively pursue its own agenda,” a source said. The sources said the reappointment of J-K Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) chief Saifuddin Soz has encouraged those leaders who had been opposing a pre-poll alliance with the National Conference. The Congress leadership has also decided to take a tough stand on extending the 73rd Amendment to the Indian Constitution in Jammu and Kashmir. Discordant notes *
Sources said transfers of some Commissioner Secretaries and Deputy Commissioners (DCs) were on the agenda of the Cabinet meeting but ministers of both parties failed to arrive at a consensus *
After the Cabinet meeting, all Congress ministers convened their own meeting separately to devise a strategy to exert pressure on the National Conference |
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DG (Prisons) calls on Governor
Jammu, April 9 This was Rajendra’s first meeting with the Governor after recently taking over as the DG, Prisons. |
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Two soldiers injured in mine blast near LoC
Srinagar, April 9 The injured soldiers have been identified as havildar Bhupal Singh and sepoy Yogesh Kumar. Both soldiers, who are the residents of Uttrakhand, have been shifted to Base Hospital in Srinagar. “Both soldiers are out of danger and they are at the hospital,” the Army officer said. The exact nature of the mine blast was not immediately clear. The officer ruled out the possibility of the blast being a militant attack and said it seemed the soldiers had accidentally tripped on a wire triggering the mine to explode. |
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British tourist’s body flown to Delhi
Srinagar, April 9 Elizabeth was found dead with multiple stab wounds in her room inside a houseboat in the city here on Saturday morning. The only suspect arrested so far is a Dutch national, who was detained by the police while trying to flee the region. The 24-year-old British woman’s body was kept at the SKIMS hospital from where it was taken to the Srinagar airport in the afternoon and airlifted to New Delhi, the police said. The British tourist, who was holidaying in the city, was stabbed over 40 times which led to her death. The Dutchman, identified as 43-year-old Richard De Wit, has been arrested by the police as the only suspect of murdering Elizabeth. |
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NC trying to cash in on Afzal ahead of polls: Mehbooba
Srinagar, April 9 “To shore up its political fortunes, the NC is up to its old games. Now, it wants to go into the election seeking bodies of Maqbool Bhat (JKLF founder) and Afzal Guru. The NC is misleading people. It is trying to use the demand for the return of mortal remains for its election campaign,” Mehbooba said while addressing a press conference here. She also accused Chief Minister Omar Abdullah of spitting fire against New Delhi whenever he was under pressure because of his misdeeds. |
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HC keeps demotion orders of CRPF IG in abeyance
Srinagar, April 9 Issuing the notices, the high court has also directed the Home Ministry and other respondents to file their objections within two weeks. The directions were issued by a single bench of Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir today in a petition by the demoted CRPF IG Shamsher Singh Sandhu, wherein he had challenged his demotion and transfer orders and prayed for quashing the same. Sandhu had taken over as the IG (Operations) of the CRPF in Kashmir on September 28, 2012. On April 3, 2013, he was demoted by the Union Home Ministry to the rank of the DIG after discrepancies were found in his physical fitness records by a medical board set up by the ministry. In a consequential order, on April 4, the Home Ministry had directed that after his demotion to the DIG rank, Sandhu be posted as the DIG at the CRPF headquarters in New Delhi. As the petition came up before the single bench of Justice Mir today, which had been kept on board by the same bench yesterday, the Assistant Solicitor General, Union of India, SA Makru, who represented the Home Ministry in the petition, submitted that five medical boards had been set up so for to determine Sandhu’s medical fitness, who was also present in the court room during the proceedings. Terming the decisions of the medical boards justified, Makru submitted that if Sandhu was sure of his medical fitness, then why he was shying away from subjecting himself to further medical examination by a medical board. Sandhu’s counsel Riyaz A Jan said the demotion and the consequential transfer orders were issued by the respondents “at his back without giving him a chance of being heard.” Jan termed Sandhu’s demotion and consequential new posting orders as “arbitrary, invidiously discriminatory and volatile” of the constitutional guarantees of the petitioner granted under Article 311 (2) of the Constitution. He submitted that the jurisdictional issue had been settled, saying that the Chief Justice of the J&K High Court had “permitted” the hearing of Sandhu’s writ petition at Srinagar. The court also directed that the present petition be connected and listed along with an earlier petition being heard by the high court. |
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Centre, state govt responsible for panches’ killing, says AJKPC
Jammu, April 9 Expressing anguish over the killing of a sarpanch, identified as Ghulam Mohammad Lone in Kolipora village of Pulwama district yesterday, the AJKPC also took on the Congress-led UPA government for turning a “mute spectator” towards the safety and security of over 33,000 panchayat members. Yesterday, it was the fourth attack on panchayat members in three months. Six panchayat members have been gunned down by “unidentified” persons in the Kashmir valley so far since the 2011 panchayat elections. “There is a big question mark on the role of international human rights organisations regarding the killing of village heads by anti-democratic forces. They should take note of the killings of elected representatives,” AJKPC chairman Shafiq Mir said while addressing an emergency meeting of the organisation here. He also criticised the role of Union Government to prevent attacks on panchayat members. AJKPC general secretary Anil Sharma held the state government directly responsible for the killing and alleged it was not competent enough to protect its citizens. He appealed to the panchayat members not to take any decision in haste vis-à-vis submitting their resignations till a final decision is taken by the AJKPC. Sharma said although the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had already issued notices to the Union and the state governments regarding the security of panchayat members, neither the state government nor the Government of India had responded to the notices as yet. Gautam Singh Jamwal, provincial secretary of the AJKPC, referring the recently concluded three-day hunger strike by AJKPC leaders for security and empowerment of panchayats in the state, alleged there was a complete anarchy in the state. “This is shameful for the government that it is not taking any action or even giving any assurance to panches and sarpanches and have left them at the mercy of terrorists,” Jamwal said. Earlier on January 11, sarpanch Habibullah Mir was shot dead by suspected militants in Gooripora village of Sopore. Two days after his killing, suspected militants shot at and injured a woman panch, Zoona, outside her house in Sopore. On February 24, suspected militants shot dead sarpanch Javed Ahmad Wani outside his house in Kalantra area of Baramulla. So far, no terror group has claimed the responsibility for these killings. |
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Governor, CM for promoting welfare of ex-servicemen
Jammu, April 9 The Governor and the Chief Minister observed that the ex-servicemen could be encouraged and enabled to set up cooperative units in the state as this could help them get engaged. To safeguard and promote the interests of the ex-servicemen from J&K and their families, they stressed the importance of available resources being optimally mobilised. They were addressing the 75th meeting of the J&K Rajya Sainik Board at Raj Bhawan here today. The Governor observed that the state had a significant population of ex-servicemen, who possessed valuable experience, skills and technical expertise in various fields, adding that the potential needs to be exploited for the overall benefit of society. He noted that for securing the objective, an appropriate mechanism could be put in place for counselling the ex-servicemen. Reviewing the construction of Sainik Bhavans, Vohra called for devising appropriate strategies for effective utilisation of assets and other infrastructure coming up at various places in the state. He stressed the need for ensuring the timely completion of all Sainik Bhavans presently under construction. He stressed the importance of all required measures being taken on an urgent basis for revitalisation of the Sainik Welfare Department as per the recommendations of the Central Government High Level Committee. The Rajya Sainik Board reviewed in detail the progress made with regard to the construction of Sainik Bhavans at Srinagar, Jammu, Rajouri, Kargil, Kupwara, Anantnag and Baramulla and the status of land acquisition for Sainik Welfare Housing Colonies. Later, Vohra chaired the meeting of the State Managing Committee for Funds and focused on the budgetary support being provided by the state government to the Department of Sainik Welfare. He emphasised the need for evolving appropriate strategies for enhancing the mobilisation and collection of funds at all levels, for maximising the welfare of the ex-servicemen and their families. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Iqbal Khandey; Principal Secretary, Finance, BB Vyas; Principal Secretary to the Governor Navin K Choudhary and Chief of Staff, Northern Command, Lt Gen HJS Sachdev. |
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BJP leader Daya Krishan Kotwal passes away
Jammu, April 9 Politicians cutting across party lines have mourned his death. They said he was one of the most respected leaders of the state known for his unflinching commitment towards the ideology of the party. Senior BJP leader Lal Krishen Advani, accompanied by national general secretaries Ram Lal and JP Nadda, along with party senior party activists reached the AIIMS this morning and offered floral tributes on his body. Kotwal’s body was brought to Jammu this morning and kept at the BJP headquarters where hundreds of party workers paid their tributes to the departed leader. Later the body was taken to Bhaderwah, the native place of Kotwal, for last rites on Wednesday. LK Advani said Kotwal had played an important role in Dr Shyama Prasad Mookherjee’s efforts for total integration of Jammu and Kashmir with the country. He always worked to boost the morale of party workers even during unfavourable conditions and his death had caused an irreparable loss, he said. BJP national president Rajnath Singh, leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley, and other national leaders have also condoled his death. Born on April 29, 1927, Kotwal was associated with the RSS from his childhood and was one of the fonder members of the Jan Sangh in J&K. During the peak of militancy in erstwhile Doda district, Kotwal stood by those fighting terrorism like a rock in Doda belt. It was all due to his efforts that migration of the minority community was stopped despite the fact that terrorists had killed many Hindus in the region. Kotwal was instrumental in the formation of village defence committees in the erstwhile Doda region. BJP state president Jugal Kishore Sharma, Nirmal Singh, Ashok Khajuria, Shamsher Singh Manhas, Jitendra Singh, Ashok Koul, Congress MLA from Bhaderwah Mohammad Sharief Niaz and others have also condoled his death. |
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After school bus mishap, govt to upgrade village health facilities
Jammu, April 9 “The Cabinet which met here today under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah approved the upgradation of the health sub-centre along with creation of 16 posts of different categories. The official decision came following the Chief Minister’s announcement to this effect during his visit to Kandiwara to express condolence to the families who had lost their children in a tragic road accident,” an official handout said. Locals of Kandiwara had alleged that the death toll in the recent road mishap could have been less if the village had been equipped with proper healthcare facilities. They had also alleged that the injured children were not provided first-aid before being referred to Srinagar hospitals. On April 4, nine schoolchildren were killed when a school bus fell into a deep gorge near Kandiwara village. Kandiwara has a population of about 8,000. The secondary-level medical facility is located at a distance of about 15 km at the Kokernag sub-district hospital. The official statement stated that the 16 new posts proposed by the health department include two posts of assistant surgeons and one each for dental surgeon, health educator, supervising pharmacist, junior X-ray technician, junior dental technician, junior lab technician and junior ophthalmic technician. The Cabinet also accorded sanction to the creation of 35 posts for the J&K State Water Resources Regulatory Authority (JKSWRRA) for its effective functioning. It gave its nod to the promotion of Pushpa Devi, Director, J&K Funds Organisation, a Member of the J&K Accounts Service, to the super time scale and she has been redesignated as Director General, J&K Funds Organization. It also accorded sanction to the promotion of eight members of the J&K Accounts Service to the special scale of Rs 37400-67000. It also approved the transfer of state land measuring 110 kanals and 16 marlas in Kupri village in Samba in favour of the J&K Home Department for establishment of an IRP Battalion. |
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Court takes note of ‘illegal constructions’ in Gulmarg
Srinagar, April 9 The high court has observed that it appears that the Gulmarg Development Authority (GDA) has not been able to effectively control the illegal constructions in these areas. These directions were issued by a division bench of the high court comprising chief Justice MM Kumar and Justice Ali Mohammad Magery following a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking directions to safeguard Gulmarg and Tangmarg from illegal constructions today. “It appears that the GDA has not been able to effectively control the illegal constructions (in these areas). Therefore, it has become important to request the Chief Secretary to remain present in the court on the next hearing so that the environment and the ecology of the area is saved,” the division bench observed in its orders made public today. The Chief Secretary, the bench stated, should appear along with all details on the next date of hearing, which has been fixed for April 16. “All the courts below and tribunal are restrained from passing any orders with regard to the issues raised in the PIL”, the bench further ordered. During an earlier hearing of the PIL on March 17, the high court had directed the authorities concerned to furnish details about all structures raised in the eco-sensitive area within the jurisdiction of the GDA and the Tangmarg Notified Area Committee.
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People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti today accused the ruling National Conference (NC) of exploiting the issue of the return of the mortal remains of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru ahead of the next year’s Assembly
elections
Lashing out at the ruling National Conference-Congress coalition for its “failure” to protect the lives of elected panchayat members in the state, the All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC) - an apex body of elected sarpanches and panches - has requested the human rights organisations to intervene into the matter and take note of the brutal killings of panchayat leaders by “unknown” forces.
