J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Gunbattle ends, holed-up militant’s
fate unknown
Srinagar, October 22
The nearly 30-hour-long encounter in Sopore ended this evening with the gutting down of the building where a militant took shelter after security forces foiled a suicide attack on the municipal council complex, killing one ultra and losing a jawan yesterday, a BSF spokesperson said.

Ladakh Front wins 17 seats
Jammu, October 22
The Ladakh Union Territory Front has so far bagged 17 out of 25 council seats in Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, elections to which were held on October 16, The Deputy Commissioner of Leh, Mr Satish Nehru, said last evening.

LoC between life and death
Teetwal (LoC), October 20
Din Mohammad watched helplessly as his brother Mand Gujjar used bare hands digging the rubbles to retrieve bodies of his wife, two sons and a daughter just a few yards away.

Bollywood acts for quake-hit
Srinagar, October 22
The Bollywood is planning to organise a mega show of television artistes here next month in an effort to raise funds for the relief and rehabilitation measures for the quake-affected people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Gunbattle ends, holed-up militant’s fate unknown

Srinagar, October 22
The nearly 30-hour-long encounter in Sopore ended this evening with the gutting down of the building where a militant took shelter after security forces foiled a suicide attack on the municipal council complex, killing one ultra and losing a jawan yesterday, a BSF spokesperson said.

The encounter between the holed-up militant and the security forces at Shalpora village ended when the building where the militant had taken shelter caught fire and was gutted, the spokesperson said.

However, he said it was not clear whether the militant was killed, as the search of the debris was in progress and so far no body had been recovered.

The building, housing a shopping centre and a clinic, was razed to the ground when troops fired rocket launchers to target the militant firing continuously on them since yesterday, official sources said.

Before the troops launched the final assault on the building, all 10 people trapped inside since yesterday were evacuated to safety, the sources said.

The encounter broke out yesterday afternoon when two heavily-armed militants in the disguise of securitymen tried to launch a suicide attack on the municipal council building at nearby Kraliteng.

The sources said the traffic on Srinagar-Bandipora road remained suspended throughout the day.

Meanwhile, three persons, including a National Conference activist and a militant, were killed and two others injured in separate incidents in the state since last night, a police spokesperson said today.

NC activist Syed Ghulam Rasool, alias Gayoor, was killed when militants intruded into his house at Ratnipora in Pulwama district today and fired at him.

Security forces shot dead an unidentified militant during search operations at Manjoos in Doda district last night and seized an AK rifle, four magazines, 91 rounds, a binocular and a mobile phone from him.

Two labourers were injured when an explosive device went off near the house of Paul Singh at Kansipora in Baramulla district last night, the spokesman said.

A civilian, Meraj-ud-din, who was among 15 persons injured in a grenade explosion in the Batmaloo area of central Srinagar yesterday, succumbed to his injuries last evening, the spokesman said. — PTI

Ladakh Front wins 17 seats

Jammu, October 22
The Ladakh Union Territory Front (LUTF) has so far bagged 17 out of 25 council seats in Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), elections to which were held on October 16, The Deputy Commissioner of Leh, Mr Satish Nehru, said last evening.

The counting of votes was undertaken last morning and 17 council seats went in favour of LUTF Mr Nehru, who is also the election authority for LAHDC, told PTI on phone here.

As per the available trends, the LUTF was going to form the council, he said, adding that the remaining results were likely to be announced soon.

The LAHDC has 30 councillors. Of these 20 councillors are elected and rest are nominated.

Earlier, Rigzin Spalbar of Congress was declared elected uncontested from Skumarkha constituency on September 21.

There were 64 candidates in the fray in the third general LAHDC elections, held on October 16. Of these 25 belonging to LUTF, 25 others to Congress and remaining 14 were independents.

LAHDC has 94,375 voters spread over 223 polling stations in the district. — PTI

LoC between life and death
Anil Bhatt

Teetwal (LoC), October 20
Din Mohammad watched helplessly as his brother Mand Gujjar used bare hands digging the rubbles to retrieve bodies of his wife, two sons and a daughter just a few yards away.

Had 67-year-old Din been able to rush, he feels he could have saved the dead. But the LoC stood between life and death. Din could only listen to frantic cries for help from 50-year-old Gujjar and see for himself how a handshaking distance proved an unbridgeable chasm on October 8 when the quake flattened the sleepy Chilyardi hamlet in Neelam valley of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).

All because of the Line of Control (LoC) along the Kishan Ganga river that winds its way through the mountains dividing Kashmir.

Din Mohammad at this village on Indian side of the LoC is a guilty man today for being unable on the holy Ramadan day to respond to frantic calls for help from his brother.

“I am guilty man today as I failed to come to rescue of my brother's repeated calls,” Din told a visiting PTI correspondent here.

“Although we rushed to the river bank with ropes and shovels to undertake rescue operation across despite being hit on this side, we failed to cross a few yards of river length (zero-line),” said an inconsolable Din.

Mano Gujjar lost his wife Ailifa, sons Nawaz and Kurom and daughter Hoora along with all live stock in the quake. Din, too, has lost his daughter Arifa in the quake in Teetwal village opposite his brother’s PoK village.

Like him, Nishada Aziz curses her stars for failure to help his uncle Nawab Din in Badian village where 41 persons were killed and the place collapsed into a mountain of debris. — PTI

Bollywood acts for quake-hit
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 22
The Bollywood is planning to organise a mega show of television artistes here next month in an effort to raise funds for the relief and rehabilitation measures for the quake-affected people of Jammu and Kashmir.

A four-member team led by Mahesh Bhat gave a relief of Rs 50 lakh from the industry to the quake-affected people at Uri on Thursday.

Bhat’s team included Shatrughan Sinha, Ashok Pandit and Shashi Ranjan, chief of the Indian Television Academy.

When a journalist drew Bhat’s attention to security in the state, he said: “If there is anything that will be neutralised by the government.”

Shatrughan Sinha appealed to those “indulging in violence to come to the help of the needy. “Yeh ghari hai dawa ki, dua ki, support and solidarity ki”, Sinha emphasised. “Jab aandhi chalti hai, tou ek doosray ka haath thamnay ka waqt hota hai”, Sinha said and held that the planned show would be a “show of solidarity”.

Mangat Ram to quit in case of changeover
Our Correspondent

Jammu, October 22
The Deputy Chief Minister, Mr Mangat Ram Sharma, has told Dr Farooq Abdullah that he would vacate the ministerial berth in the event of change of guard in the state.

Co-passengers of the two leaders onboard a Srinagar-Jammu flight told this to The Tribune here today.

Mr Sharma told Dr Abdullah that he would prefer a gubernatorial post, the co-passengers added.