J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Mixed reactions to Advani’s remarks
JAMMU, Oct 25 — The recent statement of the Union Minister for Home, Mr L.K. Advani, rejecting the demand for the trifurcation of the state has evoked mixed reaction in Jammu. The Congress had welcomed Mr Advani’s statement.

2 militants killed, 5 held
SRINAGAR, Oct 25 — Security forces shot dead two militants and arrested five others in Jammu and Kashmir where militants damaged a security vehicle in an IED blast and injured a boy since last evening.

APHC for tripartite talks
JAMMU, Oct 25 — The All-Party Hurriyat Conference, a conglomerate of 23 political and religious organisations, has reiterated its demand for a tripartite talks for resolving the Kashmir “dispute.”

Chrar-e-Sharif ‘dargah’ to complete by 
June 2001
SRINAGAR, Oct 25 — Work on the construction of Dargah, which forms first phase of Sheikh-ul-Alam at Chrar-e-Sharif, is expected to be completed by June next year at a cost of Rs 3.25 crore. Work on the shrine earlier was expected to be completed this month only coinciding with the annual Urs of Sheikh-ul-Alam today.

13 hurt in clash in Rajouri
JAMMU, Oct 25 — Thirteen persons, including seven policemen, were injured in clashes in Rajouri town between the police and protesters demonstrating against the alleged killing of a civilian by a joint team of the Army and police in Darhal area today, according to official sources here.

Census completed in Baramula
SRINAGAR, Oct 25 — Census operation in Baramula district of northern Kashmir has been successfully completed, a government spokesman said yesterday.

Night curfew along border
JAMMU, Oct 25 — The District Magistrate, Jammu has imposed night curfew from November 2 in a five-km belt along the border of Jammu district.

Mixed reactions to Advani’s remarks
From M.L. Kak
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Oct 25 — The recent statement of the Union Minister for Home, Mr L.K. Advani, rejecting the demand for the trifurcation of the state has evoked mixed reaction in Jammu. The Congress had welcomed Mr Advani’s statement.

In a statement a spokesman of the state unit of the Congress, Mr Amrit Malhotra, has supported the Union Home Minister’s contention that division of the state would be against the interests of the nation. Mr Malhotra has said that the central government should be firm on this issue and discourage those who were demanding state’s trifurcation.

However, the Jammu Mukti Morcha and the Gujjars United Front, have reacted sharply by condemning Mr Advani’s stand on trifurcation of the state.

In a statement President and Secretary-General of the Gujjars Front, Mr Anwar Chowdhary and Mr Shah Mohd Chowdhary, said here today that by rejecting the demand for the trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir Mr Advani had betrayed the people of the Jammu region. They said that by opposing the demand for a separate Jammu state Mr Advani in particular and the central Government in general, had decided to continue “vesting” power to the valley-based political leaders and bureaucrats who had, during the past 50 years, given a raw deal to the people of Jammu and Ladakh.

The two Gujjar leaders asserted that division of the state, if carried out, would not result in any communal division. They said that Muslim majority districts of Poonch, Rajouri and Doda were in favour of separate Jammu state because the successive state governments had not taken in hand suitable measures for the development of these backward areas.

They ridiculed those, including the Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah, who had started creating a false scare that trifurcation would lead to communal trouble or communal polarisation.

The two leaders said that despite having been granted Scheduled Tribe status Gujjars in the Jammu region had been denied of the privileges and facilities that would have accrued to them under ST status. They blamed the valley-based ruling political leaders and senior bureaucrats for this.

Hurriyat leaders have made it known that no elections could lead to a settlement of the Kashmir issue. They have appealed to the people to stay away from the Panchayat polls because if they were held the Government of India could exploit it telling the world that people had participated in the poll and hence had supported the existing political and constitutional arrangements.

By and large people had responded to the call for boycotting the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the Kashmir valley right from 1996. Separatists had used poor polling percentage to launch a propaganda against India conveying to the world leaders that the people in Kashmir were opposed to any democratic activities initiated by New Delhi.

It is in the same context that the census operations have proved almost a non-starter in various areas of the valley after rebels called for total boycott of these operations. 

2 militants killed, 5 held

SRINAGAR, Oct 25 (PTI) — Security forces shot dead two militants and arrested five others in Jammu and Kashmir where militants damaged a security vehicle in an IED blast and injured a boy since last evening.

Later, four militants admitted that they had been working with the security forces at Vilgam in Handwara after an earlier surrender. However, the four escaped alongwith their weapons from the security force camp and motivated six other Kashmiri boys to cross over to PoK for receiving arms training.

APHC for tripartite talks
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Oct 25 — The All-Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC), a conglomerate of 23 political and religious organisations, has reiterated its demand for a tripartite talks for resolving the Kashmir “dispute.”

The APHC also opposed bilateral talks, between the separatists and the Government, on the plea that only tripartite talks in which Pakistan also was involved, could prove meaningful.

This was decided at the Executive Committee meeting of the APHC in Srinagar today which was almost an endorsement of the opinion of working committee members of seven organisations forming the core of the Conference. During the two-day session of the working committee members of the seven constituents of the APHC majority of the members favoured tripartite talks. Though several members wanted bilateral parleys to give a chance, the general opinion was in favour of tripartite talks because they said that any initiative taken by the APHC for bilateral talks could meet the same fate as the Hizbul Mujahideen’s attempt had met in July last.

The Hizbul Mujahideen had announced a unilateral ceasefire for facilitating a dialogue with the Government of India but the move proved abortive for which the Government held Pakistan responsible.

Inside reports said that the APHC has come under a shadow as far as Pakistan’s continued support to it was concerned and hence its leadership did not want to take a step which could annoy Islamabad.

The APHC leaders are aware of Islamabad’s eagerness to force India to resume Indo-Pakistan talks for resolving the issue and as such the Hurriyat leaders may not be in a position to strike a deal with India to the discomfiture of Pakistan.

Those who have opposed bilateral talks are said to have made it clear that Hurriyat-Government talks could not usher in peace or silence the guns. They have said that control strings of militancy were in the hands of agencies across the LoC and militants, especially foreign mercenaries, continued to call the shots. In the light of these developments the Hurriyat-Government parleys would have no direct bearing on the security scenario.

The APHC has also given a call to people to boycott the panchayat elections proposed to be held in the state in January. The Gujjar Front leaders said that a separate Jammu and Ladakh states would be the only way to remove discrimination amongst these two regions.

They said that those who were opposing the demand for state’s trifurcation were themselves responsible for causing communal polarisation and for promoting regional passions. They felt that Gujjars, who constitute more than 10 per cent of the state’s total population, would feel secure, and safe politically and financially in a separate Jammu state.

The Jammu Mukti Morcha President, Prof Virender Gupta, felt dismayed over the rejection of the demand for trifurcation. He said that the way the central government refused to implement the trifurcation plan indicated that it continued to adopt policy of appeasement of the people and political leaders of Kashmir.

The Morcha chief urged the central government to reconsider its stand after holding in-depth discussion with protagonists of the trifurcation demand.

Chrar-e-Sharif ‘dargah’ to complete by June 2001
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Oct 25 — Work on the construction of Dargah, which forms first phase of Sheikh-ul-Alam at Chrar-e-Sharif, is expected to be completed by June next year at a cost of Rs 3.25 crore. Work on the shrine earlier was expected to be completed this month only coinciding with the annual Urs of Sheikh-ul-Alam today.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah who is also the chairman of the Muslim Auqaf Trust (MAT), looking after the shrines and mosques in the State, has announced that soon after the completion of Dargah (shrine) work on the construction of Khanqah, would be completed at a cost of Rs 4 crore in four years.

The Chief Minister accompanied by Finance Minister, Abdul Rahim Rather and Mr M.Y. Khan, Chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Bank visited the shrine yesterday. The shrine was completely gutted along with part of the town in an encounter between the militants and security forces in May, 1995.

During the Chief Minister’s visit on Tuesday, the Vice-Chairman of MAT, Mr Ghulam Nabi Kochak gave details of the salient features of the complex. He said that the floor area of the Dargah-e-Sharif has been increased to 15,000 square feet against the original area of 6,500 square feet and so far Rs 2.25 crore have been incurred on it.

The Chief Minister urged the authorities for taking up of a school complex in the area where besides normal curricular activities training would be imparted to students in Information Technology (IT) which has vast potential for employment generation opportunities. He said J&K Bank has agreed to finance assistance for purchase of computers. The bank has also decided to provide funds for the construction of Library Block in the area where valuable manuscripts of the shrine would also be kept for the use by the students and research scholars.

Dr Farooq Abdullah was shown gold-plated Australian Chandeliers purchased for the shrine at a cost of Rs 8 lakh. He gave on the spot instructions for purchase of 8 feet diameter chandelier from Austria for the dome above the mausoleum. He directed the architects concerned to raise plane glass shattering around the mausoleum and remove all shabby structures there. 

13 hurt in clash in Rajouri

JAMMU, Oct 25 (PTI) — Thirteen persons, including seven policemen, were injured in clashes in Rajouri town between the police and protesters demonstrating against the alleged killing of a civilian by a joint team of the Army and police in Darhal area today, according to official sources here.

The injured policemen included a Senior Divisional Police Officer (SDPO).

The trouble began when the crowd from Ujhan village in Darhal tehsil carrying the body of victim reached Gujjar Mandi in the outskirts of Rajouri town, the sources said.

The police stopped them from entering the town, which was resisted by the protesters resulting in clashes, they said.

The SDPO was seriously injured when he was hit by stones.

A senior Gujjar leader, Mirza Rasheed and Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, have rushed to the scene to pacify the agitated crowd.

A joint operation team of the Army and police which had laid ambush in Ujahan village, challenged one Abdul Razak in the early hours today, the sources said. He tried to escapeinstead of surrendering, forcing the operation team to open fire.

“He was a militant and recoveries have been made”, said a defence source here. 

Census completed in Baramula

SRINAGAR, Oct 25 (PTI) — Census operation in Baramula district of northern Kashmir has been successfully completed, a government spokesman said yesterday.

The operation in Anantnag district is also nearing completion, he said. However, he did not divulge the progress of such exercise in Srinagar, Badgam, Kupwara and Pulwama districts of the valley.

Chief Secretary Ashok Jaitly who reviewed the progress of census operation in the state at a high-level meeting here said while the government had sanctioned additional honorarium for the employees engaged in the census work, instructions had been issued to all Deputy Commissioners to identify those trying to obstruct it.

The first phase of the census was completed successfully from mid-May to June 5 and the second phase which was to commence from September 11 and completed by the month-end.

Night curfew along border

JAMMU, Oct 25 (UNI) — The District Magistrate, Jammu has imposed night curfew from November 2 in a five-km belt along the border of Jammu district.

All areas west of Manawar Tawi, from Chakla upto Narojain also fall under the order, under which movement is restricted from 9 p.m. to 5.00 a.m. It shall remain in force for two months.

The DM has also imposed restrictions under Section 144 CrPC on processions taken out by individuals or groups and sloganeering in the following areas: Bajaj tower to Amar filling station, on fly-over from Police Control to District Institute of Education, on fly-over from Subash Chowk (Maheshpura Chowk) to District Institute of Education and Training and Rotary behind New Secretariat to New Secretariat from November six, for two months or till rescinded.

This order will not apply to marriage and funeral processions.