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Uri
blast toll 11; 5 killed in J&K Reports
suggest more terrorist attacks NC
promises to achieve autonomy Mufti
launches campaign of Cong candidate |
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Shah detained Srinagar, April 9 The police today detained president of the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP), Shabir Ahmad Shah, in Baramula district of north Kashmir during the ongoing poll boycott campaign by the separatists, official sources said. 
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Uri
blast toll 11; 5 killed in J&K Srinagar, April 9 Security forces and the police, on a tip-off, conducted a search operation at Check Arsalan village in north Kashmir last night to nab militants. When the security forces were about to storm a particular house, they came under heavy fire from militants hiding inside. The security force personnel retaliated and in the fierce clash, a militant and a civilian were killed. Four other civilians and a police constable were injured. One house was also damaged. In another incident, militants entered the house of Ghulam Ali at Khachi in Udhampur district and shot dead Abdul Rashid. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad today denied that its commander-in-chief Sehrayee Baba was killed in an encounter at Sogam in north Kashmir yesterday. Talking to local mediapersons, he alleged that security forces arrested a district commander and three other militants of the outfit a fortnight ago in north Kashmir and later killed them in fake encounter. A Defence Ministry spokesman yesterday said troops killed Sehrayee and three other top Jaish commanders in a fierce encounter at Sogam in Kupwara district. Meanwhile, two persons succumbed to injuries sustained in the attack on People’s Democratic Party rally at Uri in Baramula district, bringing the death toll up to 11, official sources said today. The two persons, who were brought to the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences at Soura in critical condition for treatment, died this morning. The General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt-Gen Hari Prasad, today
reviewed the security situation in the valley following the attack on the rally yesterday. He was briefed by General Officer
Commanding, 15 Corps, on the current situation in the valley, a defence spokesman said here. The Army commander also addressed officers of the 15 Crops and released the inaugural issue of the newsletter Army in Kashmir, which
focuses on civil action programmes undertaking by the Army in the valley. Jammu: A Lashkar-e-Toiba militant and a civilian were killed in two separate incidents in Doda and Udhampur districts of Jammu division, where security forces repulsed a militant attack on a police post, official sources said here on Friday. Army troops, during a counter-terrorism operation, gunned downed Abu Zubair at Akhras village in Banihal tehsil in Doda district last evening. One AK rifle and a magazine were recovered from the slain militant. In another incident, Abdul Wahid, who was kidnapped by militants on April 7 from the Draman-Tanta area in Gandoh tehsil in Doda district, was killed by the militants. His body was recovered by the police yesterday.
— UNI, PTI |
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Reports suggest more terrorist attacks on poll rallies Jammu, April 9 The terrorists have received a shot in the arm with the Hurriyat Conference also endorsing their call for boycott of the lok sabha elections. According to intelligence reports, the terrorists are expected to scale up violence as the polling days come nearer. The terrorists have been indulging in such activity during all the elections held after 1990. The assembly elections in 2002 witnessed a lot of bloodshed and a minister was shot dead at point-blank range by terrorists while he was addressing an election rally in his constituency in Kashmir. Terrorist and separatist groups have during the assembly and lok sabha elections been giving a call for poll boycott. The Hurriyat Conference leader, Prof Abdul Gani Bhat, had said on Wednesday at Srinagar that the elections were no answer to solving the Kashmir problem. It is learnt that the Army and intelligence agencies have during the past few days intercepted wireless messages asking the terrorists to step up their attacks during the elections. Most of such messages were reportedly originating from Pakistani territory. During the recent visit of Sir Michael Anthony, British High Commissioner, here Lieut-Gen Hari Prasad, GOC-in-C of the Northern Command, had informed him that terrorists were likely to step up violence against political workers to build up fear psychosis among the people in the run up to the Lok Sabha elections. The General pointed out that the level of terrorist radio transmissions remained the same as it was before. The threat of terrorists to the electorate generally worked in the past elections, particularly in the Kashmir valley. However, there was hardly any response to the calls of poll boycott in Jammu and Ladakh regions. In the 1999 Lok Sabha elections when the boycott call was given by terrorists and separatists, polling was as low as 11.93 per cent in the Srinagar constituency, 14.31 per cent in Anantnag and 27.78 per cent in Baramula. On the other hand, Ladakh registered 81.8 per cent polling, while Jammu witnessed 46.77 per cent polling. However, 39.63 per cent electorate cast their votes in the Udhampur constituency where many segments, particularly in Doda district, were militant infested. A similar trend was witnessed during the assembly elections in October, 2002. The worst affected was Srinagar district where the polling in certain segments was as low as 3.06 per cent. It was a classic example of Mr Raman Matto, now Minister of State for Industries, winning the election from the downtown Habbakadal constituency of Srinagar by polling just 587 votes. The Kashmiri Pandit migrants who were residing in camps here cast most of these votes. Of the total electorate of 66,782 in the constituency, only 2,062 persons cast their vote. Similarly, of the 74,442 electorate in the Amirkadal constituency, only 2,280 braved the terrorist threats and came out to cast their vote. The highest polling of 9.96 per cent was registered in the Sonawar segment. The Amirakadal segment in the heart of Srinagar city had 3.06 per cent polling, while in the Batmaloo, Idgah, Zadibal and Khanyar segments, it was around 4 per cent. A similar trend was witnessed in the Anantnag segment where only 7.16 per cent electorate cast their vote. Polling during the 1996 assembly elections was equally poor in the valley. With the Election Commission this time making the presence of 600 companies of paramilitary forces for the smooth conduct of poll, it is to be seen as to how fearlessly the electorate turn out to exercise their franchise. Besides, the large number of Army deployed in the state would also be available to prevent any untoward incident during the elections. Jammu and Kashmir is the only state in the country where polling for the six Lok Sabha constituencies would be held in four phases. |
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Mufti govt appeasing militants, says Gupta JAMMU, April 9 Mr Gupta, who was campaigning for BJP candidate, Dr Nirmal Singh at various places in the Jammu Lok Sabha constituency, criticised the coalition government that was spending crores to implement its policy aimed at benefiting the anti-India elements. Addressing election rallies in Rajauri district, Dr Nirmal Singh, urged the Mufti to reduce the strength of his ministry. |
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NC promises to achieve autonomy Srinagar, April 9 This finds top priority in the 18-point manifesto released by the party president, Mr Omar Abdullah here yesterday. There is heavy criticism of the coalition government led by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, on various issues ranging from “largest
ever” size of the Council of Ministers to the failure of the government in providing jobs to the educated youth. Supporting the cause of reviving friendly relations between India and Pakistan in the light of both being nuclear powers, the manifesto seeks both the countries to give up indulging in a destructive arms race. Welcoming the recent improvements in the Indo-Pak relations, it has been resolved that the NC members elected to the Lok Sabha would be “raising their voice to carry forward this good beginning.” It also demands the opening of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road, as also the opening of the Suchetgarh-Sialkot road, the Poonch-Mirpur road the Karnah-Muzaffarabad road and the Kargil-Iskardoo road. On the economic front the National Conference has expressed serious concern over the growing debt burden of the State and demanded waiving of these debts on the pattern of Punjab and North Eastern States. The manifesto adds that the government has an overdraft of Rs 1450 crore from the Jammu and Kashmir Bank against Rs 808 crore in October 2002 when the party was voted out of power. It also demanded Central financial
support of 70 per cent aid and 30 per cent loan as in case of other States with effect from 1969. Referring to the claims of the PDP to provide jobs to at least one person from every family, it has been claimed that the “flood of employment has reached its danger level.” It adds that only some favourites have been absorbed in the government through the backdoor. There was an alarming increase in the human rights violations, the manifesto adds, particularly referring to the incident of five civilians” killing at Chithaybandi, Bandipore in February last. “Custodial killings, deaths by police firing indiscriminate rape incidents of innocent Kashmiri women have increased”, it adds. The coalition government’s policy of “hidden agenda of further weakening Article 370” that confers special status to Jammu and Kashmir, has also been criticised by the National Conference in its manifesto. It adds that the recently passed Transfer of Property Act (TPA) and “cleverly crafted attack” on permanent Residents (Disqualification) Bill or the Women’s Bill were part of the campaign of which the Chief Minister was a party. In its agenda on autonomy, that was he main plank of the National Conference election campaign in 1996 Assembly polls, the party resolves to strive hard to achieve autonomy in its
pristine form. |
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Mufti launches campaign of Cong candidate Jammu, April 9 He said the emphasis of his government was to remove the regional discontent within the state. Seventeen months earlier, when the coalition government assumed office, there was an element of discontent prevalent in the three regions and each one was complaining of neglect in the matter of development and governance. He said measures had been taken to fulfil regional aspirations. The Mufti said the medical college here was being upgraded to the level of AIIMS. The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council had been empowered to decide and execute development plans of that area, he added. Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma, Mr T.S. Bajwa, Mr Janak Raj Gupta and Mr R.S. Chib also addressed the rallies. |
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Srinagar, April 9 Mr Shah and his six associates were taken into preventive custody by the police at Pattan, 27 km from here, when they were on way to Baramula which is going to polls in the first phase on April 20, the sources said. The police had foiled attempts by various separatist leaders to address public meetings in Baramula and Kupwara over the past couple of weeks by detaining the separatist leaders. However, the separatists are being released after a day’s detention in police stations.
— PTI |
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