J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Truce no solution: Omar Farooq
Srinagar, March 26
Former All-Party Hurriyat Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Omar Farooq has said “only political initiative and not patchwork like the ceasefire” will solve the 53-year-old Kashmir issue.

People’s protests alarm NC govt
Jammu, March 26
The state government in general and the ruling National Conference leadership in particular are worried over an emerging trend in which separatists, including militants, have been engineering people’s demonstrations on different issues. What seems to worry them is the way militants have succeeded in organising protest rallies, even over the killing of foreign mercenaries.

Blankets were not made in Pak: dealer
Jammu, March 26
Senior BJP leader and Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Prof Chaman Lal Gupta, escaped being involved in a controversy over the distribution of so-called Pakistan-made blankets to panches and sarpanches in Udhampur yesterday.

Truce no solution: Omar Farooq

Srinagar, March 26
Former All-Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) Chairman Mirwaiz Omar Farooq has said “only political initiative and not patchwork like the ceasefire” will solve the 53-year-old Kashmir issue.

The only person in the APHC possessing requisite documents to travel to Pakistan, Mr Farooq told UNI here that “the problem in Kashmir was political in nature and not military”. Therefore, the Vajpayee government-sponsored truce in the valley offered no solution.

Accusing the Centre of “creating hurdles in the Kashmir peace process”, he said, “the government lacks sincerity as it still has not specified its agenda. It should have outlined a comprehensive political package to deliberate on the basic issue which included talks with the parties concerned”.

On the operational success of the ceasefire, Mirwaiz Farooq said militant groups had outrightly rejected the ceasefire and continued their operations. The security forces, too, were not following the truce in its true letter and spirit, he alleged.

Though the ceasefire was extended thrice, it did not yield the desired results, the former APHC Chairman said. “Until and unless more political political initiatives are taken, peace cannot return to the valley. These patchworks (ceasefire) will not solve the 53-year-old issue,” he added.

Criticising New Delhi for setting pre-conditions for resumption of dialogue with Pakistan, Mr Farooq said “India till date had not committed itself towards solving the core issue. Peace cannot be achieved in a vacuum”.

Mr Farooq claimed that the Hurriyat leaders had gone out of the way when they had offered to visit Pakistan for parleys with leaders of various militant outfits and the Musharraf government. “But unfortunately, the offer was declined by the Vajpayee government”.

On Union Home Minister L.K. Advani’s statement that separatist leaders would not be allowed to mediate in the Kashmir issue, the 28-year-old religious leader said: “We are a primary party to the dispute and we would not negotiate on our own issue.”

Mr Farooq said though the United Nations resolution on Kashmir provided a strong base for solving the issue, the world body had failed in its duty. United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan had, during his recent visit to the Indian sub-continent, declined to hold talks with the APHC.

Also blaming Pakistan for the Kargil war, he said it was not needed when the Lahore peace process was set in motion. “We are very critical of the operation.”

On Pakistan’s role in sponsoring militancy across the Line of Control, Mr Farooq said, “Islamabad helps Kashmiris politically, diplomatically and morally. The military help is provided by the government in “azad Kashmir” (occupied Kashmir), which we consider part of Jammu and Kashmir and not Pakistan.”

Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in his ‘musings’ had said that “we have to shed the beaten track and look for alternatives. But New Delhi has not pushed for that,” he added.

On internal differences within the APHC, Mr Farooq said the alliance partners were governed by a common minimum programme. Anybody violating this agenda and found going against the collective approach would be subject to disciplinary action.

He said former Chairman of the amalgam Syed Ali Shah Geelani had raised certain issues at the wrong time. “The time has not come to rake up these issues,” he added.

He, however, said there were no differences over the basic issues. Mr Omar Farooq became the 12th Mirwaiz (religious head) of Kashmir at the age of 17 in May, 1990, when his father Mirwaiz Moulvi Mohammad Farooq was assassinated by unidentified gunmen.

In 1993, various secessionist groups formed an alliance under an umbrella organisation — the All-Party Hurriyat Conference — and Mr Farooq was unanimously elected as its first Chairman. UNI

People’s protests alarm NC govt
M.L. Kak
Tribune News Service

Jammu, March 26
The state government in general and the ruling National Conference leadership in particular are worried over an emerging trend in which separatists, including militants, have been engineering people’s demonstrations on different issues.

What seems to worry them is the way militants have succeeded in organising protest rallies, even over the killing of foreign mercenaries.

Months before the non-initiation of combat operations against the militants, enforced since November 28, people’s protest demonstrations were a rare phenomenon. Such rallies were held usually over the killing of innocent civilians in the custody of security forces. But the scene has altered and people no longer shirk holding demonstrations in protest against the killing of militants.

Even the Chief of Lashkar-i-Toiba, Hafiz Mohammad, has lauded the role of the people in Kashmir and some areas in Jammu for their “participation” in the burial of militants, including foreign mercenaries.

On an appeal by a Head Constable, Hafiz Mohammad has directed activists of his organisation not to target men of the state police, except those in the Special Operations Group (SOG), and the security forces.

The Head Constable got his appeal published in a Srinagar-based Urdu daily, requesting the militants not to kill policemen whose relatives and friends were supporting the ‘jehad’.

Expressing concern at the emerging trend in which people have been taking to the streets, senior functionaries of the state government and the BSF said since November 28, more than 40 major public protest demonstrations had been seen in different parts of the valley, which included those in Haigaam and Baramula, one over the killing of a militant in custody and another against the desecration of the holy Qoran.

They referred to the recent protest rallies over the desecration of the holy Qoran and said Baramula and Poonch remained very tense when demonstrators indulged in arson and stone-pelting. A curfew was imposed.

In Baramula, when the curfew was lifted today, the town rocked by violence again, forcing the authorities to reimpose the curfew restrictions.

In Poonch, however, the day curfew was lifted today. Several parts of the valley witnessed protest demonstrations and there was a total shutdown in Poonch, Rajouri, Doda districts where processions were taken out, condemning the sacrilege. Anti-India and anti-government slogans were also raised.

In Baramula, while people were protesting against the sacrilege, some miscreants set on fire a temple. State Government functionaries said this was done to foment communal trouble.

These functionaries are of the opinion that agencies across the border and their supporters within the state are providing public protests to destabilise peace and demoralise the forces.

Militants want the attention of the security forces to be diverted towards controlling mob violence, so that they get an opportunity to strengthen their bases.

The functionaries say that between 1994 and 2000, people’s support to the militants had started dwindling. Even during the recent panchayat elections, a majority people had defied the call given by the militants to boycott the poll.

Now the militants had succeeded, to some extent, in egging people to take to the streets, even over trivial issues. Some “fanatics” in Delhi, Amritsar and Patiala had given the rebels a change to engineer public protests over desecration of the Qoran.

Blankets were not made in Pak: dealer
Tribune News Service

Jammu, March 26
Senior BJP leader and Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Prof Chaman Lal Gupta, escaped being involved in a controversy over the distribution of so-called Pakistan-made blankets to panches and sarpanches in Udhampur yesterday.

A blanket dealer belonging to Purani Mandi came to the rescue of Prof Gupta and the BJP who were being accused of either having smuggled the blankets or taken them from the consignment meant for Gujarat victims.

The dealer today showed to mediapersons bills and the cheque he received from the BJP office for the blankets.

He said the blankets had been procured from Ludhiana where manufacturers stick labels of various makes to generate market.

The Vice-President of the BJP, Mr Chander Mohan Sharma, and Mr Hans Raj Dogra, MLA, said the Press conference had been organised to prevent “our opponents” from raising the alarm.

The dealer said: “Traders use many labels on their products to attract buyers.”

He showed scores of labels which had been made locally and brought from Ludhiana which were to be pasted on different items.