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Rly station
attack: death toll 7
Don’t expect
much from SAARC meet, |
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Trifurcate J
& K, says Morcha Jawan killed in
avalanche
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Rly station attack: death toll 7 Jammu, January 3 The explosive, along with electronic fuses and codex wire, which was to be used for preparing landmines to target trains was seized after the Army launched a search operation in the hills of Kathua last evening following a tip-off. No one had been arrested in this connection. Meanwhile, the death toll in the terrorist attack at the railway station here last night rose to seven with a policeman succumbing to his injuries today. Constable Raj Kumar, was critically wounded during the encounter with the terrorists who have not yet been identified. The condition of a BSF jawan is also serious. The rail service which was suspended following the attack resumed in the wee hours with Shalimar Express leaving at 1.50 a.m. and was Jhelum Express at 2.20 a.m. The railway station presented a deserted look this morning and there was a skeleton deployment of security personnel. The Railways had installed a satellite telephone at the platform for the use of relatives of those killed and injured in the attack. Passengers, who were stranded because of the suspension of the rail traffic, had to face the biting cold as the district administration had made any arrangements for them. Meanwhile, Prof Virender Gupta, president of the Jammu Mukti Morcha, has urged the government to ensure the safety of people at sensitive installations. The security forces gunned down a hard-core militant and recovered a huge quantity of weapons in Doda district. Militants abducted a 16-year-old girl from Rajouri district of this division where an overground worker of the ultras was also arrested since yesterday, the sources said here today. A joint team of the Army and the police during search operations in the Sarkantha-Machlana area of Banihal tehsil in Doda district yesterday were fired upon by the militants, they said, adding that in the retaliatory action, the troops shot dead a militant. Reports from Rajouri district said the militants this morning abducted a Zakiya from the Kalakote area following suspicion her brother was an informer for the security forces. Srinagar: The militants on Saturday snatched rifles from policemen deployed for the security of a minority community at a village in Badgam district. About 20 militants in Army uniform descended on Sogam village around 3 a.m. and asked the five policemen posted there to hand over arms, saying that they were conducting a search operation in the area, the police said. They took away four service rifles. |
Of two namesakes and profile of courage Jammu, January 3 This is the story of two constables named Rakesh Kumar. They joined the police together and participated in several operations against rebels in various parts of the state. Rakesh Kumar and his friend Rakesh Kumar died on Friday while fighting two suicide bombers who had attacked the Jammu Railway Station. While one Rakesh Kumar was to marry on January 23 the other one was to get married on March 4 this year. Ritu Sharma, who was engaged to marry one Rakesh Kumar, has not ended her wailing and weeping beside the body of her would be groom in the medical college. She was shocked to see the body of another Rakesh Kumar brought to the hospital. Mr Abdul Rashid Khan, Inspector-General Crime and Railways, said “ had not the two Kumars shown extraordinary courage and presence of mind, the two militants, who had sneaked into the Railway Station in Army fatigue, could have killed a large number of civilians. |
Don’t expect much from SAARC meet, says Geelani Jammu, January 3 Mr Geelani, who was addressing media persons at Srinagar, said the Kashmir issue could be solved only by implementation of the resolutions of the United Nations that provided for a plebiscite on the issue. SAARC was not an appropriate forum for deciding a big issue like Kashmir, he said. He said we did not want a division of Jammu and Kashmir and rejected bilateral talks between India and Pakistan to solve the issue without associating Kashmiris in the talks. In that case, India should adopt a realistic approach and keep in mind the aspirations and sentiments of the people of Kashmir, he added. He accused India of pursuing an imperialistic policy towards Kashmir and creating bottlenecks in the solution to the issue. He warned that peace could not be restored without solving the Kashmir issue. Reopening of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road or fencing of the Line of Control were no solution, he said. Raising of “azadi” slogans by the participants of the government-organised rally at Srinagar earlier this week indicated the mood of the common people, he stated. He said India should accept the reality that Kashmir was a disputed territory and the issue had to be resolved in the light of UN resolutions. He said certain leaders were playing with the sentiments of the people by raising their expectations from the SAARC Summit. When one raised expectations too high, it resulted in disappointment, like the Agra Summit, he said. He added that the rousing reception awaiting Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Islamabad indicated the change in heart in the two countries. SRINAGAR: Describing the healing touch of the coalition government as a hoax, Mr Geelani said on Saturday that he, his wife and 60 others were denied permission to proceed for Haj pilgrimage this year. “I and my wife were prevented from performing the Haj pilgrimage for the third consecutive year,” Mr Geelani said at a press conference. This was a direct attack on the religious rights of Muslims here and exposed Indian democracy and secularism, he added. Mr Geelani claimed 60 others who had applied for Haj through the state Haj committee were also denied
permission by the government. He said the healing touch policy of the coalition government in the state was a total fraud, alleging that repression of separatists leaders was still continuing. |
Trifurcate J & K, says Morcha Jammu, January 3 The JMM has sent a memorandum to Mr Vajpayee in support of the demand. Prof Virender Gupta, President of the JMM, today released to mediapersons copies of the memorandum which said that Jammu would continue to suffer at the hands of the Kashmiri leadership as long as it remained a part of the state. It hoped that the Centre would take steps to fulfil the aspirations of the people of Jammu and protect their geographical and cultural identity. Separation of Jammu and Ladakh from Kashmir was the only viable solution that could meet the aspirations of the people of all three regions. Professor Gupta said that the Centre should understand that Jammu and Kashmir was not just the Kashmir valley alone. The valley constituted 16 per cent area of the state. |
Jawan killed in avalanche Srinagar, January 3 The valley remained under the grip of severe cold wave with reports of fresh snow on the upper reaches. The sources said a jawan of 16 Jat, Ramesh Kumar, was buried under snow following an avalanche during patrol near the Line of Control in the Teetwal sector last night. The other soldier had a narrow escape. The body was recovered this morning.
— UNI |
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