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Thursday,
August 22, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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SOG officer among 10 killed in Jammu &
Kashmir Discrimination to be BJP’s poll
plank
Look within, Farooq
tells Musharraf J&K poll: first-phase notification
today |
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Lok Jan
Shakti to contest 12 seats Chhari Mubarak reaches Panjtharni School work still
paralysed
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SOG officer among 10 killed in Jammu & Kashmir Srinagar, August 21 A report from Baramula said a joint search team of the Army and the SOG was fired upon by militants at Ganai Hamam when they were about to storm a house today. Security forces returned fire and according to initial reports a militant was killed and two civilians were injured. The operation was on when reports last came in. Sources said militants fired at a joint search party of the Rashitriya Rifles and the SOG at Wagabal in the frontier district of Kupwara late last night. Security forces, who had gone there following information that some militants were hiding there, also retaliated. The shootout continued for several hours during which two militants and ASI Ravi Fotedar were killed, the sources added. An official spokesperson said militants shot PDP leader Khazar Mohammad Bhat, a sarpanch, at Kachumuqam. In another incident, NC halqa president Ghulam Ahmad Sheikh was shot at in Sopore last night. He was admitted to hospital. Two policemen - selection grade constable Farooq Ahmad and Mohammad Yousuf - were killed by militants in the city last night. Nazir Ahmad Parray was kidnapped and later killed by ultras at Pattan in north Kashmir. JAMMU: A militant was shot by security forces at Tilla Mohalla in the Fagla area of the Surrankote sector in Poonch district this morning. SSP Poonch, Kamal Saini, said acting on a tip-off that some ultras were hiding in the the mohalla area, the police and Army personnel launched a joint operation to flush them out. As the personnel reached the area, the ultras opened fired upon them. In the following shootout the ultra was killed. In another incident, militants set ablage 30 houses in Doda district yesterday, the sources said. A powerful landmine triggered by militants near the border today rocked Hiranagar in Kathua district. There was no human casualty or damage to property, official sources said. An Army convoy detected a powerful IED at the Sherbibi area near Banihal this morning even as vehicular traffic on 300-km long Jammu-Srinagar national highway remained suspended for five hours, official sources said here.
PTI, UNI |
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Rs 2 lakh award for information on ultras Srinagar, August 21 A police spokesman said anyone providing fruitful information about the killers of two police and one CRPF personnel at the Hari Singh High Street, Lal Chowk and Karan Nagar will be given a cash reward of Rs 2 lakh. The name of the informer will be kept confidential, he said. A CRPF head constable was killed and two others were wounded when militants fired upon them at the Hari Singh High Street on Monday evening. One police constable each were also killed by militants at Lal Chowk and Karan Nagar last evening.
UNI |
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Discrimination to be BJP’s poll
plank Jammu, August 21 There is enthusiasm among BJP activists following the announcement by Mr Vankiah Naidu, BJP President that discrimination and terrorism would be the poll plank of the party. The BJP activists believe that the two issues will have an impact on the electorate as the grouse of discrimination by the successive Kashmir dominated governments is deep seated among the residents of Jammu and Ladakh. In the previous elections the BJP used the issue of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya and has, this time, chosen the issues of discrimination and terrorism which all worrying people here. The focus of terrorism has shifted to the Jammu division in the past couple of years and innocent people are being butchered by the Pakistan-sponsored terrorists. While launching the BJP election campaign at Jammu and Kathua yesterday, Mr Naidu made the Congress as the target of his attack for all the ills prevailing in Jammu and Kashmir and spared the ruling National Conference of Dr Farooq Abdullah which is supporting the NDA government at the Centre. However, he did not spare the National Conference government for discriminating against Jammu and not properly spending funds provided by the Centre for the development of the state. Keeping in mind the simmering demand of statehood for Jammu, Mr Naidu handled the issue by saying that although the BJP was not in favour of the trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir, it had not closed the doors for a dialogue with those who were asking this. The BJP leadership would not mind listening to their viewpoint. He also touched the emotional demand for the implementation of the reports of the Gajendragadkar and Wazir Commissions which were set up for suggesting measures to meet the regional aspirations of people. These reports have not seen the light of the day for the past over a quarter century. BJP leaders here point out that out of the nearly one lakh government jobs created during the past about six years, the share of the Jammu and Ladakh regions was not more than 15,000. Not only the BJP, but the Jammu State Morcha, which is steering the demand of statehood for Jammu, is also highlighting the issue of discrimination and has decided to contest the Assembly elections on this plank. On the other hand, the National Conference is likely to counter the issue of discrimination by highlighting in its manifesto the development works carried out in the Jammu and Ladakh regions in the past 27 years. National Conference leaders claim that the allegation of discrimination was politically motivated. |
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Look within, Farooq tells Musharraf Srinagar, August 21 In an interview to a TV news channel here, he wondered how a person, who had himself dismantled democratic institutions in his own country, could call the electoral process here as farcical. He said the elections in Jammu and Kashmir had been held many times and nobody needed to teach India how free and fair elections were held. He said Musharraf should first reclaim the territory of Jammu and Kashmir gifted by his country to China and hold a plebiscite in PoK, including the northern areas, and then “tell us how we should conduct our elections”.
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J&K poll: first-phase notification today Srinagar, August 21 Notification for holding elections in 26 constituencies of twin border districts of Baramula and Kupwara in Kashmir valley, Leh and Kargil in Ladakh region and Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu region will be issued tomorrow, state Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Dheeraj Gupta told reporters here today. Notifications will be issued by the Deputy Commissioners concerned, who will also function as returning officers. Mr Gupta said new voters in districts for which notification is being issued tomorrow would be allowed to enroll themselves in the voters’ list this afternoon. In other districts, last date for enrolment in voters’ list will be two days prior to the date of issuing the notification. He said security arrangements would be made for candidates, voters and poll officials during campaigning and polling. The beginning of the election process in the state after the Centre rejected the Kashmir Committee’s recommendation to defer poll, is accompanied by an increase in infiltration from across the border and militant violence in the Valley. Nearly 26 infiltrators were killed by security forces in the northern sector in the past 72 hours. Mr Gupta said all Deputy Commissioners in the state have been instructed not to allow security forces to occupy any educational institution. When told that the security forces have already occupied buildings of some educational institutions in the Valley, he said the matter would be taken up again with the Deputy Commissioners. “We have told them to hire buildings for the stay of security forces and poll officials,” he said. Mr Gupta said though the notification is being issued tomorrow, the state government has yet to give its action taken report on the issue raised by the Election Commission (EC) regarding the transfer of officials after the code of conduct came into force in the state. Mr Gupta said nearly 15 officials who had completed four years of posting at one place were being shifted. There is no blanket ban on the transfer of government employees during the election process. Employees could be transferred, but with the EC’s prior approval, he said. During its three-day tour of the state, the EC had taken a major decision that all Kashmiri migrants, whose names did not figure in the voter lists, could enrol themselves as voters with the Assistant Commissioners (Relief) at Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi, the state Deputy Chief Electoral Officer said. They could fill the forms and get the voting rights provided they were eligible, he added. He said the EC also decided to increase the number of polling stations for migrants to 11 — eight in Jammu, two in Delhi and one in Udhampur. He made it clear that the Elector’s Photo Identity Card (EPIC) was not mandatory. So far nearly five lakh EPICs have been issued to eligible voters in the state and response was good, Mr Gupta said. When told that people were facing problems in getting the EPIC, Mr Gupta said he would look into the matter and make sure that people who have applied got the card.
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2 more polling stations for migrant Pandits Srinagar, August 21 “With the addition of two more polling stations for the migrants by the three-member Election Commission during a visit to the state, the number of polling stations has gone up to 11,” state Deputy Chief Election Officer Dheeraj Gupta told reporters. Eight polling stations in Jammu, two in Udhampur and one in Delhi had been reserved for the migrants for their convenience, he said. The migrants could submit the prescribed forms for the addition, deletion or correction of names in the electional rolls at places where electoral registration officials had already been deputed. “Those who have applied for identity cards but their names do not figure in electoral rolls would also be issued the cards after verification,” he said.
PTI |
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Lok
Jan Shakti to contest 12 seats Jammu, August 21 The LJP executive committee, which met here last night under the chairmanship of party President Ram Vilas Paswan, decided to field its candidates from 12 seats. Mr Paswan told reporters that its candidates would contest from the Habba Kadal, Kokarnag, Kupwara, Shangas, Shopian, Pulwama, Bishnah, Raipur Domana, Lolab, Jammu East, Marh and Gandhinagar constituencies. He also released the list of candidates for the poll. Attacking
the ruling National Conference, he said it “only harped on demand
for autonomy and ignored welfare activities”. He ridiculed
the idea of international observers and said “we could have a team
of eminent personalities from within the country to do the same.” He
said elections in all states should be held under President’s rule,
saying that it was the only way that free and fair poll could be
ensured. Referring to the coming assembly poll in Gujarat, he
said his party would work towards avoiding a split in the anti-BJP
vote in the state but would not be a part of the third front. PTI |
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Chhari Mubarak reaches Panjtharni Srinagar, August 21 Mahant Dipender Giri and a large number of pilgrims, mostly sadhus, accompanying the Chhari Mubarak, left Sheshnag this morning and after covering a nearly 14 km-track, reached Panjtharni at a height of about 11,000 feet above sea level this afternoon. The pilgrims had to cross the highest pass of Mahaguns, 13,000 feet above sea level, before reaching the last halting point enroute to the cave shrine situated at a height of 13,000 feet. The Chhari will leave Panjtharni tomorrow morning and after covering a 6-km track, will be taken to the Amarnath shrine.
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School work still
paralysed Jammu, August 21 These border migrants have occupied more than 62 school buildings and wherever the migrants spared the institutions these were occupied by security personnel. According to the authorities of the Bishna Government Higher Secondary School, 12 out of 13 rooms in the school building have been occupied by migrants for the past several months. “Only the room of the Principal has been spared, “said a senior teacher. The teacher said: We could held classes in the open but the sprawling playground, too, has seen occupied by migrants. A tented colony has come up there.”
Vicky and Sunny of Class 12 said: “We have not seen the new text books yet. We come to school at 8 A.M. and return to our houses within an hour.” This is the story that one finds of school premises. Another teacher said: We come, mark our attendance and return to our houses. He said the fate of more than 6,000 students is in jeopardy. The Director, School Education, confirmed that more than 62 school buildings were under the occupation of migrants and the security forces. He said so far more than 2,300 students had been adjusted in camp schools and 700 in other schools. Nearly 1,000 students were being taught in open spaces. Sultry weather and intermittent rain have added to the woes of those students who have to attend classes in the open. The dropout rate has increased during the past three months. Official reports have confirmed that the whereabouts of more than 600 students were not known. It is believed that they have left their studies. A visit to some border areas revealed that besides the migrant students those already studying in schools unaffected by migration have been inconvenienced by the adjustment of groups of border students, resulting in overcrowding of classrooms. A student from Poonch, Zaffar, said” “ When more than 700 students from the border areas are adjusted in 10 schools, overcrowding is natural.” He said individual attention from teacher had been missing for all these months. The district administration has taken measures to settle border migrants at different places. Officials of the Revenue Department said: “We are waiting for new tents so that additional colonies can be set up for accommodating these migrants.” Besides, alternative arrangements were being made for the security forces, too. But in the light of meagre resources the task of clearing all school buildings may be a long-drawn affair. |
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Video
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Jammu,
August 21
