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Chances of Shafi Qureshi replacing Mufti as CM bleak
Return of Pandits to valley becomes hazy
Stars of peace twinkle over Kargil
8 militants, 4 others killed in J&K
Six held for selling fake appointment orders
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Sex racket unearthed, five
arrested
Srinagar, July 24 The Jammu and Kashmir police today unearthed a sex racket by arresting five persons, including three girls, here. Acting on a tip-off, a police team raided two city hotels in the Karan Nagar area and arrested three girls involved in the flesh trade racket yesterday. 
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Chances of Shafi Qureshi replacing Mufti as CM bleak
Jammu, July 24 Party sources in Jammu said that soon after Mr Qureshi had an hour-long meeting with Ms Sonia Gandhi,Congress president, in Delhi last week political secretary to Ms Gandhi,Mr Ahmed Patel, made known his opposition to Mr Qureshi being installed as Chief Minister in Jammu and Kashmir. According to these sources, Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs,sided with Mr Patel though for different reasons.Though Mr Azad is on the top of the panel of those Congress leaders who are being considered for replacing Mufti Mohd.sayeed,he,has,however developed a cold feet on two grounds. First he does not want to accept a difficult assignment in a troubled state like Jammu and Kashmir.Hitherto Mr Azad has a reputation of being an able administrator and a successful politician. He, therefore, does not want to get exposed in Jammu and Kashmir where events of far reaching consequences have become a fashion of the day and where omissions and commissions of different nature have become a part of administrative and political scene. Sources said that Mr Azad has,also,apprehensions that the turn of events may warrant a midterm Assembly poll and as such he would not like to sacrifice the present vital assignment as Union Minister for a Chief Minister’s post that may not last for another three years. He, instead, wants a docile Congress leader to be the Chief Minister so that Mr Azad is able to have the upper hand.Such an arrangement is not possible if Mr Qureshi takes over as Chief Minister because besides being an able administrator he is a stiff-necked politician not ready to brook any interference or dictation from persons junior to him in politics. Mufti Sayeed has a lobby of supporters in the AICC. This lobby has been in favour of the status quo and are engaged in convincing Ms Gandhi that change of guard at this moment can prove counterproductive for the Congress in Jammu and
Kashmir. Their argument is that at present the Mufti is held responsible for all omissions and commissions, including the stepup in the activities of militants and the separatists,and if the transfer of power agreement was implemented the blame for such mistakes would fall on the shoulders of the Congress. But congress leaders in Jammu and kashmir continue to be impatient.They want the power transfer agreement to be
implemented on the plea that the Mufti has been sidelining those ministerial colleagues who belong to the Congress when he takes important policy decisions. It is in this context that the Congress high command is yet to decide whether to opt for the status quo or for the transfer of power. There are still three months left for the October 2002 agreement to get implemented. Hence the party’s high command is not in a hurry. Sources said that it will examine all pros and cons of the matter and then take its decision. The AICC leadership is faced with twin problems. Since Mufti Mohd. Sayeed’s trackrecord as Chief Minister has not been dismal his removal could not only complicate the political scene in Jammu and Kashmir but also enable the Mufti to gain added political weight. Secondly,the BJP leaders are not as much vocal in criticising the PDP-led coalition Government in and outside Parliament as they may do it if a Congress leader takes over the state’s Chief Minister.The Congress high command, sources said, is weighing these issues before it could decide on the transfer
of power. |
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Return of Pandits to valley becomes hazy
Srinagar, July 24 About 50 representatives of various migrant Kashmiri Pandit organisations held a day-long meeting with the moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq here on Tuesday last. The APHC, which is keen on the return of the Pandits, held its first meeting with the Pandit representatives since the migration of over two lakh Pandits from the Valley with the eruption of militancy in the early 1990s. The meeting followed a series of meetings between APHC representatives and migrants at various places in Jammu region. However, later the leaders of these organisations, representatives of which had attended the meeting here, claimed that they were not the representatives and had gone in their individual capacities. Some of the major Pandit groups stayed away from the meeting. A joint statement issued by the Pandits and the APHC after the meeting here on July 19 sought the creation of a favourable environment with the support of the people of the state for the migrants’ return. The migrants’ return to the Valley is one of the priorities of the coalition government, which has stepped up preparations in this direction. It has already received over 1,100 applications from such migrants living in camps for their return and
accommodation in the Valley. The work on three migrant colonies has been accelerated to ensure immediate return of those willing. These colonies are coming up at Sheikhpora in Budgam district, Tulamulla in Srinagar and Mattan in Anantnag district. The colony at Sheikhpora was being given final touches to receive the first batch by the end of this month, which may cause some more delay. But, a representative of the All Migrants Coordination Committee (AMCC), Mr Bharat Bhushan Bhat, who attended the recent meeting here, rejecting the move told The Tribune that return to these colonies would be like “shifting from one camp
to another”. Union Minister of state for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal said here yesterday that the Centre was ready to extend its help in ensuring the return of migrants back to their homes in the Valley. He said the developments like the recent meeting between the APHC and migrant Pandits was an indication of the normalcy returning to the Valley. Four militant outfits, Al-Nasireen, Farzandan-e-Millat, Save Kashmir Movement and Al-Arifeen, on Friday last warned Pandits against returning to Kashmir for they had “deserted majority community at a crucial time”. These four groups jointly had earlier issued threats to those boarding the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus when it began in April this year. A fresh threat against the return of migrants was issued by the Al-Bader outfit here yesterday. The statements from militants and Pandit organisations have been described as acts of sabotage by the moderate Hurriyat Conference. Reacting to these threats, Saleem Geelani of the APHC said these things should not have happened as the time now was for coming closer. Saleem Geelani of the Democratic Freedom Party of Shabir Shah, who has joined the moderate APHC after parting ways from Shah, had been the mediator between the APHC and Pandit leaders to facilitate their meeting. |
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Stars of peace twinkle over Kargil
Kargil, July 24 A visit to the town last week revealed that residents were happy and relaxed with a whiff of change in the air. A number of newly constructed buildings were seen, which were earlier damaged in the shelling. The entire town was glittering with lights around midnight. “We are no longer on the razor’s edge,” said Gulam Ali, an octogenarian. “During those days even on minor provocation, the shelling would start and continue for hours. Most of the residents usually fled the town before dawn. After spending most of the time in bunkers and crevices, they used to come back to the town after dusk. We got respite only when the weather was bad. Now with the guns silent, we can spend time with the family and earn out livelihood,” he added. Prevez, a waiter in a restaurant, recalled the night that saw the maximum shelling. The reason for the provocation was India’s victory over Pakistan in a cricket match. “At that time, we prayed that there should be no match between the two neighbours. But these days I love to see cricket matches. This year I really enjoyed the Indo-Pak friendship series and hoped that more matches would be organised in the future,” he remarked. Nabib Ahmed, another resident, said: “Earlier, we were living under the shadow of death. The entire town looked like a ghost town. The sound of shelling haunted the residents. Most of them fled the town. You can now see people shopping and taking a stroll even at night”. A schoolboy, who runs a tea stall in the main market at night, said he was happy with the silence of the guns. “Schools are reporting good attendance these days. Teachers, who were on long leave, are now regularly taking classes,” he said. Surjit Singh, a truck driver, said National Highway 1-A, the lifeline of Kargil and Leh, was pounded heavily to disrupt winter supplies to the Army. The 15 km stretch of the highway between Kargil and Kharbu was the worst affected. “Now the highway is one of the best ones in the country. Even at night trucks and other commercial vehicles can be seen plying,” he added. The town is known for its picturesque beauty, challenging terrain and rich cultural heritage. Even during peak militancy days, Kargil remained on the international
tourism map. |
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8 militants, 4 others killed in J&K
Srinagar, July 24 He said security forces killed three foreign militants of the Lashker-e-Toiba in an encounter at Bhata Dhurian village in the Ghursai area of Poonch district in Jammu region late last night. The encounter began after a patrol party was attacked by the militants
equipped with sophisticated weapons. Three AK rifles, five magazines, two wireless sets, one hand grenade, 31 rounds and Rs 1,140 of India currency were seized from the slain ultras. The slain militants were
identified as Abu Bilal, alias Faiz Ullah, Abu Shahadad and Abu Sayar, all residents of Pakistan, the spokesman added. Security forces killed two more militants in an encounter at Waterbugh village in south Kashmir district of Anantnag this afternoon. Two AK rifles and other arms and ammunition were seized from the slain militants, he said. The spokesman said in an encounter at Ajar village in Bandipora area of north Kashmir security forces killed two militants, including a foreigner last night. Two AK rifles, eight magazines and 114 rounds were recovered from them, he added. Militants last night shot dead a released Hizbul Mujahideen militant Mushtag Ahmad Mir at general Bus Stand in Anantnag. During the shoot out one civilian Ali Mohammad Khan was injured and have been
evacuated to hospital, the spokesman said. Militants also shot Mushtaq Ahmad at Dabri village in Udhampur district of Jammu region last evening. The spokesman said during the preceding night of July 23 and 24, three persons were killed and another was injured in a firing incident at Pathergund bridge near Vilgam in frontier district of Kupwara. At least three children were injured when they found an explosive device at Ajar village in Bandipora and started fiddling with it. The explosive was went off causing injuries
to them. The injured children were rushed to hospital, the spokesman said. One person got critically
injured due to a mine blast at Kuthar forest while he was grazing cattles there. The police and other security forces last night recovered nine anti-personnel mines, one UBGL, 250 dry cells, 30 meters cordex wire and a remote control device from Thanamandi area of Rajauri district.
— UNI |
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Six held for selling fake appointment orders
Srinagar, July 24 Acting on a specific information about the racket, Crime Branch officials raided various places and arrested six persons and recovered several fake appointment orders, a police spokesman said. He said various items like typewriter and stamps of various government officers had been seized. All the six accused were being interrogated, he said, adding two vehicles, which were being used for transportation of the fake appointment orders to different corners of the valley, had also been seized. The spokesman said investigation of the case was in progress and more arrests were expected.
— PTI |
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Sex racket unearthed, five arrested Srinagar, July 24 Acting on a tip-off, a police team raided two city hotels in the Karan Nagar area and arrested three girls involved in the flesh trade racket yesterday. A police spokesman said today that two pimps were also arrested in this connection and further arrests were expected. The girls were allegedly involved in making pornographic films as a video camera has also been recovered from them, he said. About the modus operandi of the gang, he said they used to strike deal on mobile phones with customers and were being provided rooms in the two hotels. He said the police has launched a hunt to nab the owners of the hotels as they were believed to be involved in the racket. — PTI
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