Srinagar, January 4
Nearly 24 protesters were injured in ding-dong battles with the police here today while demonstrating against the execution of former Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein. It was the second day of demonstrations in the Kashmir valley following Id-ul-Zuha after Saddam Hussein’s execution on Saturday last, though protests were held here on Saturday and Sunday last.

Demonstrators took to streets raising anti-US slogans in Maisuma near the central Lal Chowk area here this morning. They hurled stones on the police and CRPF personnel and passing vehicles. However, they were chased away by the police and the CRPF after pitched battles forcing the shopkeepers to put up their shutters. All shops and business establishments remained closed in the area following the incident. The police resorted to cane charge to disperse the protesters without disturbing traffic in the central Budshah Chowk and Lal Chowk area.

Protests were also held in Nowhatta and Gojwara areas of interior city around noon today, where the demonstrators burnt effigies of US President George W Bush raising anti-Bush and anti- US slogans. The demonstrators hurled stones on the Police and the CRPF. When cane charge failed to disperse the demonstrators the police lobbed teargas shells and fired into the air. Several police and CRPF personnel were injured in the battles that continued for more than two hours. The demonstrations disrupted traffic in the area, mainly on the road to the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura on the outskirts of the city. Traffic was restored later, however, shops and business establishments were closed due to disturbances.

Jammu, January 4
The Assembly secretariat is faced with a problem relating to the seating arrangement for former Deputy Chief Minister, Muzaffar Hussain Baig. The problem surfaced four days before the start of the Budget session of the legislature from January 8.

A senior Assembly secretariat official said here today “we have not yet finalised seating arrangement for Mr Baig who no longer is a member of the Council of Ministers nor is he the leader of the PDP Legislature Party. As a Minister and leader of the legislature party he used to occupy a seat in the front row. He would sit in seat number two next to the Chief Minister and Mufti Mohammed Sayeed was given seat number three after he quit as Chief Minister.

The PDP has already elected Mr Abdul Aziz Zargar, Minister for Agriculture, as leader of the legislature party after Mr Baig resigned from the Council of Ministers following the PDP leadership accused him of hobnobbing with Chief Minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad. General secretary of the PDP Nizam-ud-Din Bhat said today “appointment of Mr Zargar as leader of the legislature party was okayed in the last week of September 2006.”

The Assembly secretariat sources said “if we allot a seat in the front row to Mr Baig it would kick up a row from Mr Harsh Dev Singh of the Panthers Party, who had been given a seat in the second row after he was dropped from the Cabinet in November 2006.” Mr Harsh Dev Singh had registered a protest on the floor of the House on the plea that as leader of the legislature party of the Panthers Party and as a former Minister he deserved a seat in the front row..

In case the Assembly secretariat allotted a seat in the front row Mr Baig would find a seat close to the National Conference legislators which he may not relish.

Mr Nizam-ud-Din Bhat said, “it is wrong to say that the differences between Mr Baig and the PDP leadership have not been ironed out.” He said “appointment of Mr Zarfar as leader of the Legislature Party of the PDP is over a year old and during this time the misunderstanding between Mr Baig and the PDP leadership had been resolved.” In support of his claim he said that “had not these differences been resolved Mr Baig would have not been appointed chairman of the committee, constituted by the PDP for preparing the document on self-rule.”

The Assembly secretariat sources said Mr Baig would get the treatment meted out to all former Ministers regarding allotment of seat in the Assembly.

Jammu, January 4
With the Opposition National Conference (NC) set to shun its Congress-friendly posture on the floor of the House, the coming Budget session of the J and K legislature is expected to witness a lot of heat.

The session of the two Houses is beginning here on January 8 with Governor's Address.

The bickering within the ruling Congress-PDP coalition may also cast a shadow on the proceedings of the legislature.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has convened a meeting of his coalition partners at his residence on Saturday evening when he might try to cool down tempers.

In an interesting development, the PDP last night removed the one-time Mufti loyalist, Mr Muzaffar Hussain Baig, from the post of the leader of the PDP Legislature Party and nominated Mr Abdul Aziz Zargar, Agriculture Minister, in his place.

The 25-member Legislature Party of the NC is being geared up to effectively corner the Congress-led coalition government in the Assembly. The NC members in the Legislative Council are likely to raise various issues to pinprick the coalition government before many of them complete term in the House on February 27. During the previous sessions, the NC generally supported various steps taken by the Congress-led coalition government.

Sources in the NC said its members would try to justify the party's boycott of the round-table conference convened by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and also the five working groups appointed to find a solution to the Kashmir problem.

The NC is also expected to raise the issue of "human rights violations" by security forces and deaths in police custody. The party would also try to corner Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on the issue of “failure” of the government to curb corruption.

It is to be seen what role the PDP plays following the wordy duel between Mr Azad and Finance Minister Abdul Hameed Qarra, during a recent Cabinet meeting and the subsequent statements of the PDP leaders in public. Mr Azad had reportedly threatened to dissolve the Assembly and go in for a mid-term poll in case the PDP ministers did not cooperate. The other coalition partners, including the Panthers Party and the PDF, are also annoyed with the Congress leadership for "ignoring" them while taking important decisions. On the other hand, the Congress legislators might try to give credit to their party for finalising the "Roshni" legislation to regularise encroachments on government land, creation of eight new districts and decision to appoint a finance commission.

New Delhi, January 4
Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) Chief Syed Salahuddin has denied any link between the Al-Qaida and his outfit and said it is not in the “interest of the Hizb” as it is “fighting” all Kashmiris and not Muslims alone.

“As far as we Kashmiris are concerned, we are only confined to Kashmir.... we have no introduction or links with the Al-Qaida. I think it is not in our interest to side with Al-Qaida because we are not fighting only for the Muslim Kashmiris but for all Kashmiris, including non-Muslims,” Salahuddin said in an interview to a Pakistan-based private news channel.

The Chief of the United Jehad Council (UJC), an umbrella organisation of 19 militant groups operating in Kashmir, claimed that the United States of America “introduced” the name of Al Qaida after the 9/11 attacks.

“The outfit was not popular among the Muslims till 9/11.... I never heard of the Al-Qaida during the Afghan Jihad,” he said.

Stating that India has always tried to establish links between the Hizb and the Al-Qaida and Taliban, Salahuddin said both groups emerged only in the ’90s.

‘’We started our struggle more than a century ago and the Al-Qaida and the Hizb came into existence only in the ’90s,” claimed Salahuddin who is based in Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

Asked if the people involved in the 7/7 bombing in London had any links with the Hizb, he said his outfit was only operating in Kashmir. — UNI

Srinagar, January 4
Lt-Gen HS Panag visited the Kashmir valley today, shortly after assuming the command of the Northern Army.

Accompanied by his wife, Annie Panag, President, Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA), Northern Command, he was welcomed at the BB Cantonment here on arrival by the GOC of 15 Corps Lt-Gen AS Sekhon, and Mrs S.Sekhon.

The General was apprised of the latest situation as well as development activities undertaken by the Army, A defence spokesman said here.

During his visit to the forward areas, the Army Commander interacted with senior Army officers and troops deployed on the Line of Control (LoC) as well as involved in anti-insurgency operations. He appreciated the soldiers for their efforts to bring normalcy and maintain an environment of peace in the valley as well as checking infiltration on LoC.

Mrs Annie Panag was briefed by Mrs Sekhon, President, 15 Corps AWWA, on the welfare measures for families of all ranks and women empowerment programmes initiated in Kashmir.

Jammu, January 4
The State Vigilance Organisation (SVO) today arrested four officers, including two Block Development Officers (BDOs), on charges of using sub-standard material for construction of 18 school buildings in Anantnag district of Kashmir.

Others arrested are an Assistant Executive Engineer of the rural engineering wing and a district manager of SICOP.

According to the Additional Director-General of Police (SVO), Dr Ashok Bhan, these officers allegedly conspired with a local steel factory owner and used sub-standard material for constructing the school buildings.

During investigation it was revealed that the BDOs of Qazigund, Dachnipura, Pahloo, Qaimoh, Khowripura and Kulgam gave a sum of Rs 38.43 lakh as advance payment to the District Manager of SICOP for supplying and fixing steel trusses for the 18 schools.

The District Manager of SICOP allegedly in conspiracy with the BDOs and the engineer prepared fake certificates for release of payment against "sub-standard, under-specification and under-weight" steel trusses.

The weight of truss for each school building was fixed at 3160 kg, but on verification the SVO found that the supplied trusses weighed between 1719 kg to 2364 kg. Most of the trusses weighed around 1,800 kg. The entire payment of Rs 2.17 lakh was released on account of truss for the school building at Homshalibugh although the building was yet to be constructed. Further investigations revealed that other steel material used was also sub-standard.

Jammu, January 4
In a major success, the troops of the 58 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) and the J&K Police killed four hardcore foreign terrorists in a gunbattle in the Udhampur district today.

A spokesman of the Army said the terrorists were commanders of different outfits and belonged to Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were trapped by the security forces in the Gool area following a tip-off.

They have been identified as Abu Sufiya, chief commander of JeM, Abu Bilal, district commander of Al-Badr, Abu Salim, divisional commander, HUJI, and Mohammed Sharif, group commander, JeM.

Three AK-56 rifles, one AK-47 rifle, huge quantity of ammunition and many warlike stores have been seized from the spot.

The Army authorities have claimed that with this successful operation, the HUJI, JeM and Al-Badr leadership has been virtually eliminated from the Udhampur region.

2 killed in accidents
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, January 4
Two persons, including a child, were killed and nine others injured in different accidents in the Kashmir valley today.

A six-year-old child, Khurshid Ahmad Mir, was killed when he was hit by a TATA Sumo vehicle in Kupwara district.

Two were injured when they were hit by a Maruti car at Kujar, near here. One of them Abdul Hameed Dar, succumbed to his injuries on the way to hospital.

Eight other persons were injured in two head-on collisions and hitting by a speeding tipper at different places today, the police here said.