Jammu, June 27
Reports from Kashmiri separatist camps reveal that agencies in Pakistan played a key role in persuading the organisation of Islamic conference (OIC) to drop the name of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, chairman, Tehrik Hurriyat Conference, from the list of invitees for its forthcoming conference.

It is for the first time that Mr Geelani has not been invited by the OIC. In the past, he would top the list of invitees from Kashmir. However, this time the chairman, APHC, Molvi Umar Farooq, the JKLF chief, Mohammad Yasin Mailk, and the president, Democratic Freedom Party, Mr Shabir Ahmed Shah, have been invited from Kashmir.

The participation of Mr Malik and Mr Shah in the OIC meet is yet uncertain because both of them have to secure the Indian passport. When Mr Shabir Shah was invited to visit Pakistan, his application for travel documents was rejected because in the “Nationality” column he had written “Kashmiri” instead of Indian. In case he applies for the passport, he is likely to repeat the exercise.

Molvi Umar Farooq has accepted the invitation and he will participate in the meet as he has a passport.

Sources said agencies in Pakistan had persuaded the OIC not to invite Mr Geelani, who had fallen out with the ruling establishment in Islamabad. Pakistani leaders had not relished the series of statements from Mr Geelani in which he had accused the Pakistan Government, including Gen Pervez Musharraf, of having sidelined the Kashmir issue.

Pakistani agencies have also asked Geelani loyalists to vacate the Hurriyat Conference headquarters in Rawalpindi. Under the latest instructions, Mr Farooq Rehmani, a Geelani loyalist, has been told to hand-over the keys of the headquarters to those loyal to Molvi Umar Farooq and who support the APHC.

However, these developments do not seem to have dampened the spirit of Mr Geelani, who continues to address largely attended public rallies in various parts of Kashmir.

A majority of the militant leaders, including the chairman of the United Jehad Council, Syed Salahuddin, have announced their support for Mr Geelani and his policy.

Jammu, June 27
The state BJP chief, Dr Nirmal Singh, while welcoming the decision of the UPA government to reject the Pakistan Information Minister, Sheikh Rashid’s application for travel to Jammu and Kashmir, has demanded the registration of sedition cases against Kashmiri separatist leaders.

In a statement here today, Dr Nirmal Singh said action should be taken against the Hurriyat leaders who had returned from Pakistan where they spit venom against India and made a common cause with Pakistan.

He said the separatist leaders openly advocated the merger of Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan. He expressed surprise over the freedom that the Indian Government had given the Hurriyat leaders even after the anti-India tirade they launched in Pakistan.

Dr Nirmal Singh accused the UPA government of adopting double standards towards Kashmiri Muslim separatists and Sikhs who advocated the creation of Khalistan.

He said while the government booked Mr Simranjit Singh Mann on a charge of sedition, the PDP-Congress coalition government here had allowed separatists to move freely even after making venomous statements against India in Pakistan.

He demanded that the government should adopt a uniform policy against separatists of any state and not treat them with different yardsticks.

In another statement, Mr Hari Om, spokesman for the BJP, shared the views of the PoK Prime Minister, Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan, that the Hurriyat was a conglomerate of unrepresentative elements and their decisions on Kashmir could not be accepted.

Mr Hari Om said leaders like Mr Omar Farooq should close down their separatist shop and start taking part in the political process of the state. He said the PoK Prime Minister was absolutely correct in questioning the representative character of the Hurriyat. What Sikandar Hayat had said about the Hurriyat was a slap on the face of the separatist leaders who had just returned after a fortnight tour of Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the Panthers Party has also welcomed the Centre’s decision to reject the application of Sheikh Rashid for visiting the valley.

Srinagar, June 27
A Jammu and Kashmir minister escaped a bid on his life while two top militant commanders and three security personnel were among 14 persons killed in the state during the past 24 hours, an official spokesman said here today.

A report from Baramula quoting official sources said Minister of State for Education Ghulam Nabi Lone had gone to Degree College here to inaugurate a sports festival.

Soon after the inauguration, as he reached the exit gate of the ground, some students stopped him and apprised him of their problems.

As he was busy discussing some issues with the students, militants hurled a hand grenade towards the college gate, adjacent to the venue of the sports festival.

The sources said seven students were wounded, some of them critically, in the grenade attack.

However, the minister escaped unhurt, they added. Among the wounded, Ashiq Zaman Tantray, a BA student and a resident of Delina, was shifted to Srinagar for treatment.

However, an official spokesman said militants lobbed a UBGL grenade towards Degree College, Baramula, which exploded near the outer fencing wall causing injuries to a student.

The glasspanes of an ambulance of District Hospital Baramula, parked there were also shettered due to the impact of the blast, he added.

The sports festival was organised by the Jammu and Kashmir Sports Council.

An encounter ensued between the militants and the security forces at Takiya Bahram Shah in south Kashmir district of Anantnag early today.

One Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami militant, identified as Abdul Rashid Gursi, a resident of Ladoo Gadool in Kokernag, was killed in the gunfight. One AK-56 rifle, three magazines, 67 rounds, two hand grenades and one pouch were seized from the slain militant, they said.

Militants shot dead a Jammu and Kashmir constable, Abdul Rashid Sheikh, at Bumai near the Kulgam bus stand in south Kashmir district of Pulwama this afternoon.
— UNI

Srinagar, June 27
There has been a considerable decline in militancy related incidents and violence so far has been at its lowest as compared to the previous years in Jammu and Kashmir.

This was observed by the Director-General of Jammu and Kashmir Police, Mr Gopal Sharma, while inaugurating a two-day regional workshop of the Superintendents of Police, North Zone, at the SKICC here, this morning. He said the number of incidents during the past six months was comparatively less

Mr Sharma said conferences like this, which followed a meet of the Directors-General of Police, northern states earlier this month, reflected the changing security scenario in the region. The DGP said it was held as part of the exercise to improve police services at the ground level. He added a meeting of the Superintendents of Police of the militancy-affected areas of the country would be held here in October this year.

He held that those participating in such conferences here served as ambassadors who would be returning to their respective areas with an impression about the improving security situation in Jammu and Kashmir. This, he said, would directly have its impact on the flow of tourists, particularly to the Kashmir valley.

Referring to the measures taken for the restoration of peace, the DGP said there was a complete synergy between the police and other security agencies. He said special attention was given to the training of the police personnel.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Kamal Kumar, Director of the National Police Academy, said the workshop was meant for improving the quality of governance at the basic level. The final report will be submitted to the Prime Minister after the meetings of all four zones of the country are held.