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Panthers to contest 5 LS seats in J&K
Avoid electioneering, court tells BJP
chief
Election pamphlets banned in Kupwara
NCP to support Cong in J&K
Choppers to be used for poll in
Leh
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10-yr jail for two for abducting
doctor
Militants attack security forces camp
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Panthers to contest 5 LS seats in J&K
Udhampur, March 23 Mr Bhim Singh made this announcement while addressing the plenary session of the Panthers Party here this afternoon. Except Ladakh, the party would field its candidates at Jammu, Udhampur, Srinagar, Baramula and Anantnag. While Mr Bhim Singh would field himself against Mr Lal Singh, Health Minister who was the Congress nominee at
Udhampur Mr Yash Pal Kaundal, Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, who belongs to the Panthers Party, would contest the election in Jammu against Mr Madan Lal, PWD Minister, who is the Congress candidate. The decision of the Panthers Party is likely to create problems for the coalition government as besides others, he has decided to field a minister from his party against a Cabinet minister belonging to the Congress on the Jammu seat. The PDP and the Congress have so far failed to reach an understanding on the Baramula seat where the two have fielded their respective candidates. Interestingly, his decision was reportedly endorsed by the Education Minister, Mr Harshdev Singh, Animal Husbandry Minister, Mr Yash Pal Kaundal and Mr Balwant Singh Mankotia and Mr Faqir Nath, all from the Panthers Party, who were present at the plenary session. This is being considered significant in the backdrop of speculations that the Panthers Party might split on the issue of contesting the election against its own coalition partners. Mr Bhim Singh asserted that the Panthers Party would withdraw from the Jammu seat only if the Congress left the field open for his party in the Udhampur constituency. He said when the PDP and the Congress had fielded their candidates in the Baramula constituency, what was the objection with the Panthers Party also jumping in the fray. The Panthers Party has decided to field Sayed Rafiq Shah from the Baramula constituency. The candidates for the Srinagar and Anantnag constituencies would be announced next week. The party adopted various resolutions which were virtually its election manifesto. It demanded the reorganisation of the state on the basis of cultural, linguistic and geographical identity to ensure the speedy growth of the three regions. This would create a new atmosphere of peace and equality. Among other things the resolution stressed that to ensure equitable and just development of the three regions, it was essential to ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the Sikri Commission. It demanded that Kishtwar be connected with rail and all political prisoners against whom there were no serious cases be granted general amnesty so that they could participate in the elections. It demanded that the state government should grant a minimum social security of Rs 2000 per month to each educated unemployed at par with the financial assistance being given to surrendered terrorists. |
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Avoid electioneering, court tells BJP chief
Srinagar, March 23 Admitting the PIL filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Students Welfare Association, Mr Justice Muzaffar Jan directed the BJP state president Nirmal Singh, party spokesman Hari Om and JMM president Varinder Gupta not to participate in the process of elections till objections were filed and considered. Mr Justice Jan passed the restricting orders on the leaders after the counsel for petitioners argued that the students were suffering as the duo were also holding teaching posts in the University of Jammu and were not paying attention to their jobs as they were busy with electioneering. The next date of hearing of the litigation has been fixed for April 14. —PTI |
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Election pamphlets banned in Kupwara
Srinagar, March 23 An official spokesman said today that the District Election Officer, Kupwara had put restrictions on the printing of election related pamphelts and posters containing any message which was illegal, offensive or objectionable like appeals on grounds of religion, caste, community and language or character assassination of the opponent during electioneering in the district. The posters which appeared in several parts of valley, ask people to stay away from the election process or face the consequences. The breakaway Hurriyat Conference headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani has already launched an anti-election campaign in the valley. —UNI |
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NCP to support Cong in J&K
Jammu, March 23 The decision was taken here today at a meeting of the NCP that was presided over by Thakur Randhir Singh, president of the party. He said the NCP was against the daughter’s Bill. On the other hand Mr Chaman Lal Gupta, Minister of State for Defence and BJP candidate for the Udhampur seat, has claimed that the Congress, Panthers Party and National Conference have become unpopular, particularly in Jammu region. Mr Gupta accused the Congress of playing with the sentiments of the people of Jammu as a meeting of the Cabinet, chaired by the Deputy Chief Minister, Mr Mangat Ram Sharma, had granted financial benefits to surrendered terrorists. Mr Nirmal Singh, state BJP chief and candidate for the Jammu seat, accused the Mufti-led government of having failed to take steps to mitigate sufferings of those who had to migrate from the border villages during the build-up on the Indo-Pakistan borders. |
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Choppers to be used for poll in Leh
Jammu, March 23 Helicopter services will be used for polling stations of Fotoksar with 181 voters, Yulchung wih 117 voters, Neraks with 122 voters, Lingshed with 557 voters, Skumpata with 87 voters and Dipling with 148 voters, district election officer Leh Satish Nehru said yesterday. Of 222 polling stations in entire Leh district, Mr Nehru said helicopter services would be used for only these six polling stations as it is difficult to reach them through other modes of transportation. There are 28 hyper-sensitive polling sations and 19 sensitive polling stations in the disrict, he said, adding the election authority shall be taking adequate measures for maintaining law and order during the election process. The Leh district with 92,980 voters, including 44,024 women voters and 2,579 service voters, is one of the two district of Ladakh parliamentary constituency. The other district of the constituency is Kargil. Fastan is the highest polling station at an altitude of 17000 feet in Nobra assembly segment of Leh district, he said, adding almost all polling stations in Nyoma sub-division of Leh Assembly segment are at an altitude exceeding 13000 feet. —
PTI |
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Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road opening ‘may dilute India’s stand’
Jammu, March 23 Mr Ram Madhav, a spokesman for the RSS at the national level, answering queries of mediapersons here today said that with the Indian and Pakistan governments issuing passports and visas for visit of people through the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road, it might mean that India had accepted the Line of Control (LoC) as a border between the two countries. This would also amount to the violation of the resolution adopted in Parliament in 1999 that the Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) belonged to India. He said the RSS was against any such move that dilute the stand of India. Neither was the RSS in favour of converting the LoC into an international border. Mr Madhav said the government should thoroughly address the security concerns before taking steps to reopen the road between India and PoK. He was critical of the USA granting Pakistan the status of a “major non-NATO ally” and said this indicated the lopsided policy of America. The US Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, during his visit to Delhi did not bother to take India into confidence on the issue. He said the tendency of the USA to act as a global cop was not good. It had adopted double standards by showering benefits on Pakistan, which had become a breeding ground for terrorists and had smuggled the nuclear plans to certain “rouge countries”. Mr Madhav said the RSS would support any agitation against the daughters’ bill that seeks to deny state subject rights to those women who marry outsiders. The bill was aimed at harming the people of Jammu and the Kashmiri migrants, he alleged. The bill should be withdrawn and Article 370 providing special status to J&K should be abrogated as it was resulting in separatist tendencies. He accused the Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed of trying to please the secessionist elements and terrorists through his “healing touch” policy. People had great expectations from the PDP-Congress coalition government, but they had done nothing and even the Congress had failed to remove discrimination with the Jammu region. He said the RSS supported the demand for the trifurcation of J&K and it would support any agitation in this direction. Mr Madhav hoped that some tangible results would come out of the talks between the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr L.K. Advani, and the Hurriyat leaders on March 27. It was an achievement that the Hurriyat had accepted to continue the dialogue within the framework of the Constitution. |
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10-yr jail for two for abducting doctor
Jammu, March 23 The principal session judge, Jammu, Subash Chander Gupta also fined Rs 10,000, Salim Mohammad alias Mohammad Sali of Rajpura, Jammu, and Sartaj Singh each. Young woman doctor, was dragged out from a matador at gun-point in the Gandhinagar colony when she was on her way to hospital, the court observed damage to the mind and reputation of the doctor and her family could not be sacrificed by the fact that the accused were young and married. The court also observed their act had created insecurity among school, college girls and working women. The doctor was taken to different places in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Faridabad and finally to Delhi with the intention of marrying her forcibly. Salim Mohammad then took her to a house of a Molvi at Mustafabad in Delhi for marrying her forcibly. The police recovered her on June 17, 1996 and both the accused were arrested. —
PTI |
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Militants attack security forces camp
Baramula, March 23 Official sources said militants hurled grenades followed by heavy firing towards a security forces camp and nearby police station at Sogam in Kupwara district late last night. The security forces retaliated. There were no reports of any casualties but the militants escaped, sources said. —
UNI |
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