J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Girl’s abduction, admissions rock J&K Assembly
Jammu, February 23
Abduction of a teenaged girl, Meenakshi, from Udhampur, and admissions given to 67 students of an unauthorised college to Government medical colleges cast their shadow on the proceedings of the Assembly and on normal life in Jammu today.

Cong for no conditions on Pak visit
Jammu, February 23
The state unit of the Congress has questioned the wisdom of BJP-led NDA government in delaying the grant of passports to the five-member Hurriyat Conference team for visiting Pakistan. The PCC president, Mr Mohd Shafi Qureshi, told newspersons here today if the Government of India had announced its willingness to talk to the Hurriyat leaders and encourage them to visit Pakistan for discussing the Kashmir issue there was no political wisdom in putting conditions on the proposed visit.

Mourning continues in Haigam
Haigam (Sopore), February 23
An abyss of gloom has engulfed this village which is surrounded by vast apple orchards’ following the alleged custodial killing of one and subsequent death in firing on protesters by troops last week. 

Youth’s arm chopped off by gangsters
Kathua, February 23
A large number of residents of Lachchipur, Lagate Morh, Barwal Morh, Sakta Chak and Jasrota staged protest demonstration and blocked the Jammu-Kathua National Highway for more than five hours at Barwal Morh Kathua.

Girl’s abduction, admissions rock J&K Assembly
Tribune News Service

Jammu, February 23
Abduction of a teenaged girl, Meenakshi, from Udhampur, and admissions given to 67 students of an unauthorised college to Government medical colleges cast their shadow on the proceedings of the Assembly and on normal life in Jammu today.

MLAs belonging to the BJP, the Congress, the BSP, the Panthers Party and the Janata Dal staged walkouts twice from the House protesting against the failure of the state government to find. Meenakshi, who was abducted on February 8, and restoring her to her parents and to cancel the “illegal” admission given to 67 students in medical colleges.

Even before the start of the question hour, members belonging to the BJP, Congress and Panthers Party were on their feet, shouting slogans and demanding immediate restoration of the girl to her parents. When the Speaker pleaded for discipline, the protesting members shouted, “Ladki Ko Pesh Karo” (present the girl), and walked out of the House.

The issue was raised during the zero hour. When the acting Chief Minister, Mr Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah, informed the House that Meenakshi had talked to her parents on the phone for the second time, a BJP member, Mr Shiv Charan Gupta, contested Mr Shah’s claim, saying that the abducted girl had not phoned her parents again. There was din in the House with members belonging to the opposition seeking firm steps for locating the whereabouts of the girl.

Mr Shah said that police teams had been constituted and some of them had been sent outside the state but so far there has been no clue about the girl. He said that since yesterday, the Inspector-General of Police, Mr R.V. Raju, had been camping in Udhampur to supervise rescue measures. In the interest of the investigations, he declined to make any further comment. At this juncture, the opposition members staged another walkout.

The opposition members also demanded immediate cancellation of the admission given to students of Prime Medical college in the Government colleges because the authorities had committed an ‘illegal’ act. They referred to the ongoing agitation launched by the students in Jammu and said that several thousand students had been boycotting the classes for the past 50 days and their career was in jeopardy.

The Assembly took up existing power crisis for a short discussion. Members, cutting across the party lines, expressed concern over the continued electricity crisis warranting prolonged power cuts. Those belonging to Kashmir referred to the enormous difficulties being faced by the people in the valley who have not received power supply for the past week.

The Minister for Power, Mr S.S. Slathia, informed the House that total power shutdown in the valley was the result of damage caused to the transmission tower near Banihal by the militants. He said work was on and it may take another five to seven days to carry out temporary repair of the transmission system so that electricity from the northern grid could be transmitted to the valley.

Mr Slathia said that refusal by the northern grid to supply additional power, sharp fall in river level forcing three local projects to generate one-tenth of their optimum capacity and other allied matters had caused acute power shortage. He said after the Ranjit Sagar project was commissioned on March 4, there was a possibility that the state could get additional electricity.

Meanwhile, normal life was partially affected in Jammu following a call for bandh given by various organisations, including the Vikas Party, Janata Dal, Jammu Joint Student Federation and the ABVP. The call was given in protest against the failure of the government to trace Meenakshi, and over the Government’s recent admission policy under which students of an unauthorised college were given admission to medical colleges.

The activists of the JJSF and ABVP stoned passing vehicles and raised road blocks in number of areas leading to disruption in passenger transport services.A majority of shops remained close for most of the day.

Work in government offices, educational institutions and other departments was affected because the employees could not come in the absence of passenger transport services.

The police said that response to the bandh was partial and there was no major incident of violence from any part of the city. The protesters staged demonstrations in several localities shouting anti-Government slogans.

Cong for no conditions on Pak visit
Tribune News Service

Jammu, February 23
The state unit of the Congress has questioned the wisdom of BJP-led NDA government in delaying the grant of passports to the five-member Hurriyat Conference team for visiting Pakistan.

The PCC president, Mr Mohd Shafi Qureshi, told newspersons here today if the Government of India had announced its willingness to talk to the Hurriyat leaders and encourage them to visit Pakistan for discussing the Kashmir issue there was no political wisdom in putting conditions on the proposed visit. He said the prerogative of selecting the team for visiting Pakistan should be given to the APHC and the government should not sit as a selector.

Mr Qureshi said he favoured the peace process initiated by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, but this unilateral ceasefire had resulted in increase in the killing of civilians. He said the ceasefire would not succeed unless the other side, especially Pakistan, responded to it positively. He said in the absence of any guarantee from Pakistan that it would encourage and aid militancy related violence the peace process may not show any results. He said this was evident when during the past three months the security situation had not witnessed any improvement.

The PCC chief blamed so-called experts on Kashmir for causing confusion. He said, “Too many Kashmir cooks have spoiled the broth.” He said both the National Conference and the BJP were responsible for the mess in which the state of Jammu and Kashmir had been placed in.

In this connection, he referred to the ongoing panchayat elections in the state and said these elections had “sabotaged” the peace process because militants did not want people to take part in the elections and hence indulged in violence.

Mr Qureshi said he had failed to understand the government’s track diplomacy. He said, “We have been hearing of track two diplomacy these days when we do not know what was track one and how many more tracks are to be put into practice.”

He criticised the National Conference for having planned to concentrate powers instead of decentralising powers. He said by nominating women members to panchayats the government had tried to pack these committees with their men. He wanted amendment to the Panchayat Act to allow power to be devolved to the people.

Mourning continues in Haigam
Ehsan Fazili
Tribune News Service

Haigam (Sopore), February 23
An abyss of gloom has engulfed this village which is surrounded by vast apple orchards’ following the alleged custodial killing of one and subsequent death in firing on protesters by troops last week. State ministers, separatist leaders, friends, acquaintances and relatives continue to pour in mourning the death of civilians, including two women, in the area, with some of them assuring action against the guilty and others resenting yet another incident of killings.

The family of Jalil Ahmad Shah, a medical shop owner in the village, is yet to come out of the trauma caused by his death, who was the only bread-earner of the family with five sisters, four of them unmarried and a younger brother, who was a student at the Degree College, Sopore. Jalil who was sent to Bangalore for computer training by his father, Abdul Kabir Shah, in 1994 but had to return after eight months only due to killing of his father by militants.

According to his mother, Jalil Ahmed Shah had been struggling hard to get benefits for his younger sisters and brother and had been following a case of ex-gratia in favour of the family for his father’s death in 1994. Jalil had to run from Sopore to Baramula to Srinagar in connection with the settlement of the case so that he could finalise the marriage of one of his sisters.

They alleged that he was frequently harassed by security forces who had labelled him a militant just because he had donated blood for the quake victims of Gujarat along with over 100 others at a camp organised by the JKLF here early this month. The JKLF had claimed that Jalil was their supporter while the police branded him as district commander of Harkat-e-Jehadi Islami for Pattan-Sopore belt.

Contesting official claim that Jalil Ahmad was killed in an encounter with the security forces at Juhama jungles, the relatives said he had gone to Sopore in connection with the settlement of his father’s case. “We were informed that Jalil was held by security forces and lodged there”, the family members said. They added that the security forces conducted a raid the same evening seeking his gun. It was on Thursday morning that the police informed them that the body of Jalil Ahmad was lying in Baramula, they added.

Jalil’s house is among three houses in the village where mourners and relatives continue to pour in for the deaths of civilians. Bilqees, daughter of Mohammad Maqbool Rather, and a relative of Jalil, was among those killed in the firing by troops. “This is third such death in the family during the past six years, one of the relatives said. Her father, Mohammad Maqbool, was killed by unidentified gunmen for being a “supporter of the ruling party”. His son, Hilal Ahmad, who then was forced to “take to gun for vengeance” was killed in another incident in 1993.

The relatives also swarmed at the house of Mohammad Maqbool Shah, whose wife Ateeqa Begum died among those at the highway on January 15. At least 19 others were injured, two of whom are still admitted to the Bone and Joints Hospital, Srinagar.

Youth’s arm chopped off by gangsters
Our Correspondent

Kathua, February 23
A large number of residents of Lachchipur, Lagate Morh, Barwal Morh, Sakta Chak and Jasrota staged protest demonstration and blocked the Jammu-Kathua National Highway for more than five hours at Barwal Morh Kathua.

They were protesting against the chopping-off a arm of a youth, Karamjit Singh (24), a partner of Highway Dhaba, Logate Morh here by the notorious criminals.

It was alleged that goomd of Mr Baljeet Singh, alias Lilly, gang of Rakh Lachchipura village were involved in the incident. According to the police, Karamjit Singh, had old enmity with Baljeet Singh gangs.

When Karamjit Singh was going to his Dhaba from his village Lachhipura today the gang members attacked him with swords and kirpans and chopped off his arm and took the arm along with them. He was admitted to the GMC, Jammu, where doctors referred him to the CMC Ludhiana, for micro-surgery.

The police has registered a case and raided several hideouts.

Meanwhile, J and K Sikh Forum President Kartar Singh Rishi, H.S. Wazir, SAD President Pritam Singh Bajli have condemned the attack and demanded immediate arrest of culprits.