J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Students of the Regional Engineering College (REC), Srinagar, hailing from outside Kashmir Valley, staging a demonstration at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Friday to draw attention to the pathetic state of affairs at this institute. — PTI photo

US officials in Srinagar to meet Hurriyat leaders
NEW DELHI, May 12 — A team of the officials of the US Embassy is currently in Srinagar to meet the All Party Hurriyat Conference leaders. The sources said that a Second Secretary of the US Embassy, Mr Donald Lu, accompanied by another official, was likely to meet the Hurriyat chairman, Mr S.A.S. Gillani, today.

Six B’desh nationals shot in J&K
SRINAGAR, May 12 — Security forces killed six Bangladeshi nationals in the R.S. Pora sector late last night while elsewhere in the state, a jawan was killed and forces recovered mines, rockets and detonators during the past 24 hours.

University teachers on warpath
JAMMU, May 12 — Teachers of Jammu and Kashmir universities are again on the warpath. They have threatened to go on an indefinite strike in case their demand for the release of pay arrears is not accepted within two days.

J&K’s partition into four parts mooted
JAMMU, May 12 — The peoples’ Initiative on Peace and Unity a constituent of the Panun Kashmir, Jammu Joint Students Federation and the Ladakh Buddhist Association, has reiterated the partition of Jammu and Kashmir into four parts so that non-Muslim minorities got their homeland within the valley which could be granted a union territory’s status.

US officials in Srinagar to meet Hurriyat leaders
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, May 12 — A team of the officials of the US Embassy is currently in Srinagar to meet the All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leaders. The sources said that a Second Secretary of the US Embassy, Mr Donald Lu, accompanied by another official, was likely to meet the Hurriyat chairman, Mr S.A.S. Gillani, today.

The Ministry of External Affairs described the visit of the US Embassy officials to Srinagar as part of the diplomatic activities.

When confronted that the US Embassy spokesman has said that the diplomats have gone there to assess and analyse the situation, the spokesman said that Indian Embassy officials in Washington also go to states to assess and analyse.

Meanwhile, an executive meeting of the APHC held in Srinagar this week remained inconclusive and is likely to be held soon.

The offer of a dialogue made by New Delhi was discussed at length, the sources said adding that it was decided that the various constituents of the APHC would seek the opinion of their other leaders and followers.

It was also felt that the Hurriyat should also establish contacts with other important Kashmiri leaders like Mr Shabbir Shah to know their mind about the offer of a dialogue so that the APHC does not get isolated in the process.

Six B’desh nationals shot in J&K

SRINAGAR, May 12 (UNI, PTI) — Security forces killed six Bangladeshi nationals in the R.S. Pora sector late last night while elsewhere in the state, a jawan was killed and forces recovered mines, rockets and detonators during the past 24 hours.

An official spokesman said security forces killed six Bangladeshi nationals immediately after they sneaked into the Abdullian post in R.S. Pora sector late last night.

He said a jawan lost his life and another was injured when militants attacked a patrol party Gujjar Nard at Banihal last evening. However, the militants escaped.

A counter-insurgent was injured when militants fired at him at Kokernag in South Kashmir.

Militants shot at and injured one Shiraz Ahmad at Kulgam Bazar last evening while one girl was also injured in the shootout.

Forces recovered six rockets, 30 anti-personnel mines, 56 detonators, 10 grenades, one universal machine gun, one AK rifle and three pistols in the border area of Karnah.

JAMMU: Three persons, including an Army jawan, were killed and another injured in cross-firing in Ramban even as troops continued their offensive against ultras hiding in the higher reaches of Doda and Udhampur districts, official sources said today.

A subedar of 12 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) Ray Ali Khan was killed and another subedar G.S. Bhatti seriously injured when an army patrol party was ambushed by militants yesterday.

A BSF jawan who was injured yesterday succumbed while a civilian was killed in cross-firing in the Ramban area.

University teachers on warpath
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, May 12 — Teachers of Jammu and Kashmir universities are again on the warpath. They have threatened to go on an indefinite strike in case their demand for the release of pay arrears is not accepted within two days.

The president of the Jammu University Teachers’ Association (JUTA), Dr Virender Gupta, and the general secretary, Dr V.P. Magotra, told reporters here today that association members would go on an indefinite strike from May 16 if by that time "we are not paid arrears of the pay hike under the UGC scales".

Dr Gupta said JUTA had been agitating, in one way or the other, for the past two years but the state government had turned a deaf ear to "our demands." He said the Union Human Resource Development Ministry was committed to pay 80 per cent of the amount incurred on the wage hike. The ministry had deposited Rs 15 crore with the Reserve Bank of India a long time back. However, the money could not be transferred to the state because of the "indifferent attitude" of the state government.

He said the government did not submit the details of the amount needed for the release of pay arrears to the Union ministry. A university delegation had to visit Delhi and on its own submitted a detailed report.

In reply to a question, the JUTA leaders said the state government had to pay 20 per cent of the expenses incurred on the release of pay arrears. They said the exercise would cost Rs 18 crore and thus the state government had to spend only Rs 3 crore since the HRD Ministry had deposited Rs 15 crore with the RBI. They said if the pay arrears were not paid to them immediately and in one instalment they would have no other alternative but to go on an indefinite strike. They said the students would suffer and the responsibility for this would rest on the state government which had done nothing for implementing the career advancement scheme for the university teachers.

Mr Gupta said JUTA was in touch with the Kashmir University Teachers Association which has been requested to persue the case in the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar. They said the non-implementation of the career advancement scheme had led to stagnation.

J&K’s partition into four parts mooted
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, May 12 — The peoples’ Initiative on Peace and Unity a constituent of the Panun Kashmir, Jammu Joint Students Federation and the Ladakh Buddhist Association, has reiterated the partition of Jammu and Kashmir into four parts so that non-Muslim minorities got their homeland within the valley which could be granted a union territory’s status.

In an appeal issued here yesterday, the organisation said creation of union territory of Ladakh, statehood for Jammu province, creation of Panun Kashmir for Kashmiri Pandits and all those who seek full integration with India and a statehood for the remaining portion of the Kashmir valley were the only way to end regional discrimination and ethnic cleansing in the valley.

Possibly peeved by the central government’s plan to hold talks with the separatists operating in the state the Peoples’ Initiative on Peace and Unity has said. "The experience of the past half century instills no confidence in us regarding the sensitivity and sincerity of the Indian political leadership about the issues at stake in Jammu and Kashmir."

It has said the continued constitutional and political legitimacy accorded to the Muslim nationalism in its different variants in Jammu and Kashmir appears to have become the hallmark of the Indian secularism."

The organisation berated the Government of India’s soft approach towards what it called "autonomy package" for the state, which could have far-reaching consequences on the country’s integrity. It warned the government against diluting India’s sovereignty over Jammu and Kashmir.

It has demanded a national consensus among the major political parties in the country for fighting unitedly the politics of "religious nationalism" feeding secessionism in the state.