Srinagar, June 29
The Jammu and Kashmir Vigilance Organisation has attached a residential house of a former employee of the Food and Supplies Department following his involvement in a case of misappropriation of government funds.

An official spokesman said the land was purchased by Ghulam Rasool Magray in the name of his father for over Rs 24 lakh on which a two-storey house was constructed for over Rs 20 lakh. The present value of the property is estimated at around Rs 75 lakh. The accused also owns two houses at Nowpachi Marwah and Jammu.

The accused, Ghulam Rasool Magray from Kishtwar area of Doda, during his posting in the Food and Supplies Department, in league with others, had misappropriated public money about Rs 9.61 crore during the period from 1997 to 2002 by misusing his official position and indulging in corrupt practices. In the course of investigation he was found to have raised a two-storey concrete house at Sarnal, KP Road, Anantnag, out of the ill-gotten money.

According to a spokesman, the misappropriation was caused by the excess foodgrains drawn against artificially inflated population of Marwah-Warwan blocks of Kishtwar and additionally by misappropriating the carriage charges meant for such excess foodgrains between 1997 and 2002.It also surfaced during investigation that against actual consuming population of 37,900, Ghulam Rasool Magray and other officials inflated it to 53,500 by fraudulently adding approximately 15,400 non-existent consumers. In this way, approximately 1,70,600 quintals of foodgrains in excess were fraudulently drawn from the government godowns for supplying to the fictitious consumers and their sale proceeds as also the carriage charges misappropriated. 

Jammu, June 29
The Tehrik Hurriyat Conference,headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani, has rejected the direction issued by the Jamait-e-Islami to Mr Geelani and three other associates that in case they wanted to remain members of the Jamait, they should quit the Hurriyat conglomerate.

After three days of the Jamait direction, the Tehrik Hurriyat Conference leadership has reacted by dubbing the Jamait decision as “unconstitutional”.

Jammu, June 29
The Jammu Bar Association organised indefinite strike from today in protest against threats issued to its member, Mr Sunil Sethi, who had gone to Srinagar to defend his brother, Mr Anil Sethi, in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, where the CBI has filed charge sheet against nine persons involved in the sex scandal that rocked the valley recently.

According to Mr Sunil Sethi “when I came out of the court, two persons, wearing Khan dress, approached me near my car and told me to shut my mouth failing which I would have to face dire consequences.”

After the threat Mr Sethi drove back to Jammu and informed, through a letter, the Chief Justice of the High Court, Mr Bashir Ahmed Khan, the President of the Jammu Bar Association, and Director- General police, Gopal Sharma, about the incident and demanded security.

The lawyers went on lightning strike here yesterday but when their demand for security to Mr Sethi was not conceded the Bar “Association members decided to go on indefinite strike.

The association members also demanded that the sex scandal case be transferred from Srinagar to Jammu so that lawyers could defend their clients. The Association also expressed displeasure over the ban having been imposed by the Srinagar Bar Association on its lawyers for fighting cases of those involved in the sex scandal.

The Srinagar Bar Association has announced that no lawyer will be allowed to represent those arrested or charged in connection with the sex scandal.

The Jammu Bar Association President said that “the Srinagar Bar Association’s decision will create anarchy and we will not support it.”

Srinagar, June 29
Four pilgrims died en route the Amarnath cave shrine in South Kashmir Himalayas, taking the toll in the ongoing yatra to 16.

S.S. Jogi (63) of Pune and Raghbir Puri (65) of Mathura died of cardiac arrest at the 3,718-metre high Sheshnag, the second halting place on the traditional Pahalgam route, late last night, official sources said today.

A woman pilgrim identified as Chetna (35), a resident of Rajkot, died at the third halting station, Panchtarni yesterday.

They said an unidentified sadhu also died near the cave shrine on Monday. A total of 16 Amarnath pilgrims and a labourer have died since the commencement of the annual pilgrimage on June 11. — PTI

Srinagar, June 29
The Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Lieut-Gen S.K. Sinha (retd), has summoned the state legislature to meet here on July 28.

This, according to an official spokesman here yesterday, is in exercise of powers under Section 53 of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir. The Legislative Assembly has been summoned to meet at 9 a.m. and the Legislative Council at 9.30 a.m., respectively, the spokesman added.