J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Refugees from Pak stone Mehbooba’s meeting
Jammu, June 16
Hindu refugees from Pakistan threw stones at the Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti, who was addressing a meeting at Jhiri in the Marh block, near here, today. They were protesting against the PDP and the National Conference for opposing citizenship rights to them by the Jammu and Kashmir government.

3 CRPF men, 5 civilians hurt in grenade attack
Srinagar, June 16
Eight persons, including three CRPF men and five civilians, were injured in a grenade attack near Bandipore in north Kashmir this morning, while six suspected persons were held and a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered in a search in Jammu and Kashmir since yesterday.

Relatives beside the hospital bed of a person who was injured in a grenade attack on a CRPF party at Badyara Ashtangoo on Saturday. — Tribune photo by Mohd Amin War

15 die as bus falls into nullah
Doda, June 16
Fifteen passengers were killed and seven injured, five of them seriously, when a mini-bus skidded and fell into into a nullah near Ramban on the Jammu-Srinagar highway this afternoon.

Water scarcity: 26 tankers pressed into service
Srinagar, June 16
The government has pressed into service 26 water tankers to cope up with the increased demand for potable water in areas where there is water scarcity.

• Boy jumps into Jhelum, dies
• CRPF man commits suicide
• College building damaged

Refugees from Pak stone Mehbooba’s meeting
Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 16
Hindu refugees from Pakistan threw stones at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, who was addressing a meeting at Jhiri in the Marh block, near here, today. They were protesting against the PDP and the National Conference (NC) for opposing citizenship rights to them by the Jammu and Kashmir government.

Mehbooba escaped unhurt as the police resorted to lathi charge to disperse protesters. Several persons were injured in the violence. Labha Ram Gandhi, leader of the refugees’ committee, Anan Sharma, president of the state unit of the Shiv Sena, and five others were taken in custody by the police.

These refugees migrated from Pakistan 60 years ago during the partition of the country and have been denied citizenship rights by the state government. They said Muslims who had migrated here from outside had been granted all basic rights.

They were annoyed that the PDP and the NC opposed citizenship rights to them when Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad convened an all-parties meeting for this purpose at Srinagar on May 12. Thereafter, the PDP boycotted all three meetings of the political sub-committee set up to discuss the issue. This was for the first time any Chief Minister had taken an initiative to solve the humanitarian problem.

A consensus on the issue was necessary as an amendment of the constitution of J&K was required to grant citizenship rights to these refugees seeking basic rights, but successive governments refused to pay any heed to their demand.

Azad started efforts to solve the problem when the Prime Minister’s Kashmir Working Group (KWG) on confidence-building measures across segments of society in the state headed by Mohammad Hamid Ansari recently recommended that the problems faced by the refugees from Pakistan should be settled once for all.

These refugees have not been issued permanent resident certificates by the state government.As such they are not entitled to own property in J&K, vote in the Asembly elections and their wards do not get state government jobs. They can vote only for the Lok Sabha elections.

3 CRPF men, 5 civilians hurt in grenade attack
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, June 16
Eight persons, including three CRPF men and five civilians, were injured in a grenade attack near Bandipore in north Kashmir this morning, while six suspected persons were held and a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered in a search in Jammu and Kashmir since yesterday.

Suspected militants lobbed a hand grenade on a road- opening party of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) near Kani Bachi on the Bandipore- Sopore road at 8 am today injuring three CRPF men and five civilians. Those injured have been hospitalised, the police said. One vehicle was also damaged in the incident.

The police recovered two hand grenades from a mini- bus during the checking of vehicles at Handwara in Kupwara district today. Two persons were arrested who revealed they were working as over ground workers of the Lashkar-e-Toiba.

Two persons were held at Hyderpora here yesterday from whose possession one detonator, 10 AK rounds, Rs 43,000 in cash, three mobile sets and six SIM cards were recovered.

The Army recovered two AK rifles, two AK magazines, 62 rounds of AK ammunition, one pistol, one pen pistol, four Chinese grenades and one IED during searches in Butapathri near Uplona, a Defence spokesman here said.

Two persons were held and two hand grenades recovered from their possession in Jammu yesterday, the police here said.

One pistol, three rounds and a wireless set were recovered when a hideout of militants was busted in the Kallar Kattal forest area of Poonch district.

15 die as bus falls into nullah
Dinesh Manhotra
Tribune News Service

Doda, June 16
Fifteen passengers were killed and seven injured, five of them seriously, when a mini-bus skidded and fell into into a nullah near Ramban on the Jammu-Srinagar highway this afternoon.

Deputy inspector-general of police L. M. Mohanty told the Tribune 15 persons died on the spot while seven received severe injuries. He said some seriously injured persons had been shifted to a hospital in Srinagar treatment.

Mohanty said rescue teams had been deputed and the administration pressed into service to start rescue operation.

Reports said a mini-bus skidded and plunged into the nullah at Makerkote on the Jammu-Srinagar highway, this afternoon.

The accident took place when the driver of the mini-bus failed to negotiate a turn in the Makerkote area of Ramban. The rescue teams extricated the dead and the injured from the accident site. The deceased included couple Bal Singh and his wife Asha Devi.

Reports added the injured were shifted to a Banihal hospital, where from five critically injured were shifted to Srinagar. The mini-bus (5529-JK02G) was on its way to Makerkote from Banihal when it met with an accident.

The deceased have been identified as Mohammed Hanief, Nazir Ahmed, Ghulam Moahmmed, Mohammed Muzamil, Bal Singh, his wife Asha Devi, Mohammed Sharief, Abdul Majid, Aman-Ullaha, Noor Mohammed, Abdul Rashid Wani, Arfi and Abdul Latif.

Water scarcity: 26 tankers pressed into service
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, June 16
The government has pressed into service 26 water tankers to cope up with the increased demand for potable water in areas where there is water scarcity.

This was decided at a meeting held here yesterday to take stock of the drinking water availability in the city, reeling under intense heat due to soaring temperatures. The meeting was presided over by minister for irrigation and flood control Mohammad Dilawar Mir. He urged people to adopt austerity measures for coping with water scarcity till the Rs 57-crore Rangil water supply scheme (Phase II) gets commissioned. The minister said there was demand of about 60 MGD of drinking water in the city against the availability of 44 MGD at present.

Boy jumps into Jhelum, dies
Tribune News Service

CRPF man commits suicide

Srinagar, June 16
Head constable G.D. Bardaie of CRPF 119 Battalion, Recruit Training Centre -4 Humhama, shot himself by his service rifle inside the training centre at Humhama. He was shifted to a hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. — TNS

College building damaged

Srinagar, June 16
A mob set the computer room and furniture of a private law collage on fire at Seer, Sopore in Baramula district, today.

The mob was protesting against the alleged blasphemous remarks of the college owner, Waheeda. However, the mob was later dispersed by the Sopore police and the fire was brought under control. The police has registered a case. — TNS