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JKLF team to take up Kashmiris’ cause
Hurriyat leaders to get travel forms
APHC announces
5-member team for PoK visit
2 jawans killed in J&K
Deputy CM’s son booked for ‘manhandling’ DFO
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Flow of tourists to valley picking up
Order on forest land allotment withdrawn
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JKLF team to take up Kashmiris’ cause
Srinagar, May 26 Disclosing this here today, the JKLF Chairman, Mohammad Yaseen Malik, said this was not a dialogue process but a part of the peace process to impress upon the Pakistan leadership to involve Kashmiris in any decision on resolving the issue. He said a “high profile peace process” was going on over the past two years at the level of Foreign Secretaries. “People of Kashmir are in the dark about the peace process and do not know what is being planned about their future”, Malik commented at a press conference here this afternoon. While it is waiting for the clearance of the list of 17-member “high profile delegation” to visit PoK, the JKLF is “not optimistic” about the outcome of its efforts towards involving Kashmiris in the dialogue process to resolve the Kashmir issue. Mr Malik held that now it depended upon leaders in Pakistan whether they could involve Kashmiris in the Indo-Pak talks on Kashmir or not. “Our talks in Pakistan will focus only on involving Kashmiris and on taking care of the collective opinion” of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the JKLF chairman said. He asserted that the “main point is to involve Kashmiris in the talks where any decision is taken… to the satisfaction of the people of Jammu and Kashmir”. Referring to the first international summit of JKLF after 1972, Malik said diplomatic leadership in the UK, USA and elsewhere in the world would also converge in Pakistan and would be joined by the delegation from here. JKLF leaders in PoK and Pakistan would organise an exhibition of the front’s signature campaign across Kashmir, in various cities of Pakistan. This would be held “to make clear that we are not against Pakistan, but seek our involvement in the resolution of the Kashmir issue”, Malik commented. The JKLF chairman held that it had opposed any talks between India and Pakistan without the participation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Malik said in his meeting with the visiting Pakistan President, General Pervez Musharraf, last month in New Delhi, he had made it clear that “we are trying our level best to safeguard the interest of peace process”. He added that President Musharraf was also apprised of the JKLF signature campaign with over 15 lakh signatures of people from all over Kashmir. Mohammad Yaseen Malik, Chairman, JKLF, feels that he would be happy if he was given a chance to meet militant leaders during his visit to PoK and Pakistan. “There is no special message for the militant leaders, but we will be happy if given a chance to meet them”, Malik said in reply to a question here today. He said some of the militant leaders were his “old friends”. |
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Hurriyat leaders to get travel forms
Srinagar, May 26 “We will be issuing forms to them (Hurriyat leaders) tomorrow,” Regional Passport Officer
S.L. Sreeramulu told PTI here. Asked if the Centre had given clearance to issue forms to the separatist leaders, Sreeramulu said, “Yes. That is why we are issuing the forms to them.” He had earlier said his office had run out of forms. Islamabad had on Saturday invited leaders from both the factions of Hurriyat, the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front and the Democratic Freedom Party for a visit to Pakistan and PoK on June 2 for
talks. Sreeramulu said one form would be given to each applicant but the number of persons to be allowed to travel on the said date had not been decided so far. He said the list of passengers to travel on the bus on June 2 was almost complete. However, the Passport Officer said if the Centre issues an order to specifically accommodate the Hurriyat leaders, he would oblige. The special buses plying on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route have 19 seats and sources in the separatist camps indicated that the total number of leaders travelling to Pakistan would not exceed 15. While the moderate faction of Hurriyat named a five-member delegation to Pakistan, the hardline faction, led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani, has called an emergency meeting of its Advisory Command Council this weekend to decide on the issue.
— PTI |
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APHC announces
5-member team for PoK visit Srinagar, May 26 Those comprising the delegation include all four executive members, chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, two former chairmen, Abdul Ghani Bhat and Moulvi Abbas Ansari, and Bilal Ghani Lone, and Mr Fazal-ul-Haq Qureshi. The constituent members of the APHC had here yesterday authorised its chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, to constitute the delegation. All these five members had two rounds of talks with former Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani. The purpose of the visit to the PoK, according to the APHC chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, is to interact with the militant and political leadership to pave the way for a joint strategy for the resolution of the Kashmir issue. A spokesman of the Hurriyat Conference told The Tribune here that the requisite application forms for entry permit would be made available to them tomorrow. Meanwhile, The Centre today agreed to issue travel forms to separatist Hurriyat Conference leaders belonging to the moderate faction to go to PoK by the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus on June 2. “We will be issuing forms to them (Hurriyat leaders) tomorrow,” Regional Passport Officer S.L. Sreeramulu said here. Asked if the Centre had given clearance to issue forms to the separatist leaders, Sreeramulu said, “Yes. That is why we are issuing the forms to them.” He had earlier said his office had run out of forms.
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2 jawans killed in J&K
Srinagar, May 26 Security forces also busted four hideouts and arrested two suspected militants, he added. An encounter also took place between militants and the security forces at Drangyar woods in the border district of Kupwara this morning. Two militants and a jawan were killed in the encounter. Three other security personnel were also injured in the gunfight and have been hospitalised. Militants killed Special Police Officer (SPO) Gori Chand at Bobar
Nalluh-Thathri in Doda district of the Jammu region last evening. Security forces apprehended two suspected militants in Kupwara district. Troops busted four hideouts in Doda and Poonch districts. The spokesman said troops arrested a suspected Pakistani militant and his female accomplice at
Sonawar, near here, when they were on their way to the Anantnag district of south Kashmir last evening.
— UNI |
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Deputy CM’s son booked for ‘manhandling’ DFO
Jammu, May 26 Sharma and his son Subhash were coming here from the Kathua forest belt last evening with a truck allegedly loaded with logs of banned “sheesham” wood when they were stopped at the Kathua checkpost on the highway by Divisional Forest Official (DFO) B.M. Sharma, the sources said. The DFO asked for papers of the truck when the officials accompanying Sharma asked him to let the vehicle go as it belonged to the Deputy CM. However, the DFO was adamant on his demand for documents and threatened to seize the truck carrying the banned wood if this was not done, they said. On this, Subash entered into a verbal dual with the DFO and later allegedly manhandled him along with his supporters, the sources said. Subhash and others reportedly went on the rampage breaking some office furniture and smashing windowpanes and later proceeded towards Jammu along with the truck. A case under various Sections of CRPC was registered against the Subhash on the complaint of the forest officials, Kathua SSP Johny Williams said.
— PTI |
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Flow of tourists to valley picking up
Srinagar, May 26 This was conceded by the Tourism Minister, Mr Ghulam Hassan Mir, while inaugurating the interactive session of the visiting Akhil Bhartiya Beopar Mandal (ABBM) with the Kashmir Travel Trade here yesterday. He said there was “100 per cent occupancy in hotels even now”, which needed to be increased with the help of a healthy campaign outside the state and the country. The minister said there was even no lack of infrastructure, though it was being revived. A five-member delegation of the Akhil Bhartiya Beopar Mandal (ABBM) led by its president, Mr Sanjay Sethi, concluded a week-long visit of the valley to explore the possibility of investment to uplift the economy of the state. The delegation had a series of meetings with senior state officials, those associated with trade and tourism as part of its fact-finding mission to explore the possibilities of investment and to know the ground situation. The interaction was organised by Directorate of Tourism, Kashmir, and attended by the President ABBM, Mr. Sanjay Sethi, Director, Tourism Kashmir, and travel trade activists of the Kashmir valley. The minister assured the authorities affiliated with travel trade in northern India that adequate facilities, including accommodation were available in all the tourist destinations of Jammu and Kashmir. He said he infrastructure at other famous resorts like Kokernag, Verinag Achhabal, Yusmarg, Manasbal, Mansar, Surinsar, and Baba Reshi had been revived. Mr Sanjay Sethi, president, ABBM, said it would do its best to promote tourism in Kashmir and the focus would be how to get more of the “right kind of tourists” that would be how to get more of the “right kind of tourists” that would be helpful to the business. |
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Order on forest land allotment withdrawn
Jammu, May 26 The order signed by the Commissioner, Forest Department, Mr Najamus Saqib, said the order was withdrawn. In the order the government has mentioned no reason for the cancellation of the earlier order. Under the order, the board was permitted to use the forest land between Pahalgam and the holy cave. Even the high court had directed the government to provide land to the board during the yatra for developing facilities for the pilgrims. Meanwhile, the state BJP president, Dr Nirmal Singh, said here today that the land be given to the board for developing facilities for the
yatris. |
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Leh highway closed
Srinagar, May 26 No vehicle was allowed to move on the highway which was thrown open for traffic on May 20. A day after its opening, snow was experienced near Zojila along the arterial road.
— PTI |
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