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Saturday,
August 17, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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J&K poll most difficult: CEO
Militancy: change in strategy not design Ultra among 5 shot in J&K Khalsa party backs Akali Dal candidate VC, 10
others to get J&K awards Amarnath yatra resumes |
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J&K poll most difficult: CEO Srinagar, August 16 An official spokesman said here that the commission had ordered maintenance of status-quo-ante as it existed on August 1, 2002, in respect of the transferred officials. The schedule of elections to 87-member Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was announced on August 2. Elections are to be held in four phases beginning from September 16. The first notification for the first phase of elections would be issued on August 22. The Jammu and Kashmir Government is also issuing transfer orders of Deputy Commissioner, Poonch, according to Mr Pramod Jain, Chief Electoral Officer of Jammu and Kashmir. Addressing a press conference here today, he said this was being done on the instructions of the Election Commission. The instructions of the commission were not implemented there and the discrepancies in the voters’ list had not been removed. Mr Jain said the coming Assembly elections in the state would be most difficult due to tensions on the border and ongoing militancy but assured that the elections will be free and fair. Replying to questions, Mr Jain said the Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah’s Independence Day speech at Bakshi Stadium did not violate the model code of conduct. He said the Chief Minister’s criticism of political parties was in a “very general manner” and he did not a specifically mention any political party. Mr Jain said out of 7,025 polling stations identified for the forthcoming Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, only about 3,500 were in the normal category. About 2,000 polling stations were hypersensitive while 1,000-1,500 were sensitive polling stations in different parts of the state. He said de-clubbing of polling stations had been done. He said efforts were made to provide one polling station to at least 1,500 voters within 3 km in the plains and 2 km in the hilly areas. The total number of electorate in the state, he said, was 56,12,149. These include 28,92,290 in Jammu division, 25,46,913 in the Kashmir valley and 1,72,945 in the Ladakh region. The number of male and female voters is 29,88,720 and 26,23,429, respectively. Over, 4,000 officials from Punjab and Uttar Pradesh were being brought from Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, who would be functioning as presiding and polling officers. This would be apart from the additional troops being drawn from outside the state for the smooth conduct of the Assembly elections. adequate deployment of security forces was being made in view of the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir to ensure free and fair elections where the voters felt free to exercise their franchise The Chief Electoral Officer said obtaining the electoral photo identity card (SPIC) was purely a voluntary scheme and nobody would be disallowed to vote in the absence of this card. He said security forces had been asked not to inconvenience people on this account. He said obtaining this card was optional and did not mean that without it electors would be debarred from exercising their franchise. Giving details of the measures that the Election Commission has taken, Mr Jain said lots of initiatives had been taken at the behest of the commission, including revision of the electoral rolls. He said apart from the introduction of EPIC, electronic voting machines would be put to use for the first time in the state Assembly elections. He said, 8,000 EVMs would be used throughout the state, adding that 300 demonstration centres had been set up to impart training to poll officials and political parties. There is no move to delay the four-phase Assembly elections being held in September and October this year to facilitate the participation of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC), Mr Jain said. |
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Militancy: change in strategy not design Jammu, August 16 These sources said that after buckling under the international pressure, the Pakistani agencies had shifted the training camps. Groups of Army experts and battle-hardened Pakistani and Afghan guerrillas organise mobile camps for militants across the border. According to these sources, the recent intercepted messages have revealed that the training programme is conducted in three shifts. One such message said: “There are three shifts. Have you heard about MC (militant camp).” The other voice said: “Things are now reducing gradually.” “Closing of MC is a big setback. We have changed our schedule due to this, now I have been given the entire responsibility.” The man from this side of the border said: “You do something from there, we are not able to do anything from here. Ask them as to what are they doing.” The voice from across the LoC said: “I feel that they do not tell you the fact. I cannot tell you everything on the set.” The Defence Ministry sources said that the intercepts also indicated that groups of militants, equipped with sophisticated weapons and high grade explosives, continued to cross into Jammu and Kashmir.” Those operating within Jammu and Kashmir keep on informing their patrons across the border about their movement and bases. One such message read: “Let me know before you move ahead.” “There were many colleagues along with Parbat. Do you know Salma?” Parbat, Salma are code names for “commanders” of the rebel outfits.) The message continued “Abu Salma, Parbat, Nasrulla, Major and Basirulla have reached Lanka”. “They have reached Lanka and have also contacted Furkan, Parbat Rehan and one more colleague went from here along with Lattu Pattu and left all colleagues at Lanka.” Explaining the coded messages the ministry sources said that the guides had left the group of infiltrators at Lanka where already many Pakistani rebels have been camping. The message said “Khalid and Tanvir are in Lanka. How many Pakistanis are there with you?” The man on this side of the border is told “control them properly as they are used to following their own ways.” “You have already collected 12 Dibbas and Atta, “boxes of arms and explosives and funds. The sources said that despite additional troops having been sent the LoC and the IB, under the military buildup, the security forces, under the operational command of the Army eliminated over 700 militants, including 322 foreign mercenaries between January 1 and July 2002 and arrested 123. Had not the rate of infiltration and arms smuggling increased security forces had reason to celebrate the seizure of large quantities of arms and ammunition during the past seven months in Jammu and Kashmir. During this period over 804 assault rifles, 25 rocket launchers, 21 machineguns, 154 pistols/ revolvers, 4373 grenades and 742 kgs of high-grade explosives were recovered from the slain militants and infiltrators. However large groups of foreign mercenaries had moved out of Srinagar and Jammu cities, the sources maintain that the rebels were regrouping to disrupt the Assembly poll. According to these sources, series of encounters between the Indian troops and infiltrators in border areas of Tangdhar, Nowgaam Poonch and Rajouri are pointers to designs of Pakistan. |
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Ultra among 5 shot in J&K Srinagar, August 16 A CRPF jawan, Ram Paul, of 23 Battalion was killed when a group of militants opened fire on a post at Ragunath Temple in Baramula district town of North Kashmir early today. Militants targeted the post around 3.30 a.m. but retreated when the CRPF personnel, guarding the temple, fired back, a police spokesman here said, adding that the exchange of fire lasted for 15 minutes. In another incident, a jawan was killed and two others were injured when militants attacked a road-opening party of the security forces at Bufliaz in the border district of Poonch yesterday, the spokesman said. He said a hardcore Hizbul Mujahideen militant was killed by the Army troops deployed for Amarnath yatra near Pahalgam in Anantnag district of South Kashmir last night. Identified as Sartaj Ahmad Khan, the spokesman said, he was killed at Wularhama village on the old Pahalgam road. A civilian, Rafiq Ahmad Bhat, was also killed in the shootout, he added. The spokesman said militants abducted and later killed a shopkeeper, Javid Iqbal, near his village at Fatehpur in the border district of Rajouri early today. Militants also opened fire on Surankote police station in Poonch district last night, he said, adding that the police repulsed the attack. He said militants also exchanged fire with the security forces patrolling Balhama-Arin in Bandipora area of Baramula district last evening. Meanwhile, life remained crippled in several parts of the valley for the second day today on a general strike call given by the All-Party Hurriyat Conference to protest against people being forced to acquire Electors photo-identity card (EPIC). Shops and business establishments here and some other major towns of the valley remained closed while traffic movement was partially affected. Work in government offices too was affected and all educational institutions remained closed. State chief electoral officer Pramod Jain while addressing a press conference here said obtaining EPIC was purely a voluntary scheme and nobody would be prevented from voting in the absence of this card. Mr Jain said he had received some reports alleging that the security forces were harassing people not possessing the EPIC. JAMMU: The security forces recovered 12 kg of explosives during searches in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, the police said here on Friday. The seizure at Kotli Nullah in Bhaderwah tehsil was made by a joint party of the Special Task Force and CRPF yesterday, a police spokesman said. He said the joint pary carried searches in and around Bhaderwah town and recovered a bag containing 12 kg of explosive material, believed to have been dumped by subversives in the stream to cause blasts in the area later.
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Khalsa party backs Akali Dal candidate Jammu, August 16 The Khalsa Panthic Party leaders met here today under the chairmanship of Mr Deedar Singh and decided to support Mr Jagdev Singh. The party also decided to support those candidates whose services to the cause of the Panth were known. Meanwhile, as a result of a tussle between the RSS-headed State Morcha and the BJP, the party has not been able to finalise the list of the BJP candidates. The BJP plans to contest all 37 Assembly seats in the Jammu region, four in Ladakh and at least 20 in the Kashmir valley. The State Morcha wants a lion’s share of seats as it is keen to field its candidates from more than 30 Assembly constituencies in the Jammu region. The BJP is prepared to give five to six constituencies to the morcha but the main tussle is for the Jammu city seat. Even the RSS is a divided house. A section of the RSS is said to be in favour of extending support to the BJP candidates so that at least the BJP was able to win a majority of the 37 seats in the Jammu region. The BJP contesting in the Kashmir valley can be termed as symbolic. Senior BJP leader and the Union Minister of State for Defence, Prof Chaman Lal Gupta, will make another bid to bring about reconciliation between the State Morcha and the state unit of the BJP so that the BJP went to the poll
unitedly. |
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VC, 10
others to get J&K awards Srinagar, August 16 These awards, announcement of which was made by the Chief Secretary, Mr I.S. Malhi, include four gold medals and seven silver medals. The gold medal awardees included the late Veerana Aivali,Commissioner/ Secretary, Union Civil Aviation Mr Rigzin Kalon, agriculturist, Prof M.Y. Qadri, former Vice Chancellor of the University of Kashmir, and Prof RR Sharma, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Jammu. The silver medal awardees are: Prof MA Chaloo, Chairman, J and K Board of School Education, Prof Aman Rathore, Secretary, Board of School Education, Mr HS Gupta, Ex-Development Commissioner, Power, Dr Tara Singh, Principal Dental College, Srinagar, Dr Tsering Narboo, Surgeon specialist, Mr Ashraf Sahil, former Director, Doordarshan, Srinagar and Mr Wazir Ali, retired District Agriculture Officer. |
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Amarnath yatra resumes Jammu, August 16 The fresh batch of devotees, including 163 women, 12 children and 70 sadhus, left from the M.A.M. Stadium around 5.30 am in a fleet of 56 vehicles, official sources said. The pilgrimage was suspended yesterday as landslides blocked the track between Baltal and Nunwan (Pahalgam) that leads to the shrine.
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In video: National
Conference president Omar Abdullah opposes
imposition of Governor's rule ahead of Assembly polls in Jammu and
Kashmir. (
