Jammu, July 18
Union Water Resources Minister and state Congress president Saif-ud-Din Soz today lashed out at the PDP for ditching the Congress before completion of its three-year term in the state.

Addressing a party workers' convention here, Soz said, "Had our government survived for another three months more development works would have taken place in the state." Terming the Amarnath land row as unfortunate, he said the Amarnath yatra had a secular character, as Muslims had been associated with it right from its beginning. "A Muslim had discovered the holy cave shrine and today also Muslim ponywallahs help the pilgrims reach the cave," he said, adding that whatever the Congress government did was in the best interests of the pilgrims. He said the tourism department had been entrusted with the responsibility of making arrangements for the pilgrims, right from the entry point to the cave shrine, and it will ensure good facilities for the Amarnath yatris.

Soz urged the party activists to work unitedly to ensure that the Congress formed the next government in the state on its own. He asked them to fan out in different parts of the state to sensitise the people on the achievements of the previous Congress regime.

Referring to the ongoing power crisis, Soz said he was making all efforts to get the normal power supply restored as soon as possible. He said they had already found a replacement of the damaged transformer in Patna which was expected to reach here soon.

Commenting on the forthcoming trust vote in Parliament, Soz said the Manmohan Singh government would survive the confidence vote. He said the nuclear deal was in the country's interest and it would go a long way in helping the country meet its future power requirements. 

Mendhar (Poonch), July 18
Even as Indian and Pakistani officials met today to discuss Kashmir centric confidence building measures (CBMs), including "measures to facilitate travel and trade across the Line of Control (LoC), Pakistani army troops on Thursday morning reportedly violated ceasefire again by firing on Puna post on the LoC here in this frontier district. In the cross- firing by the Pakistani troops, an Indian trooper posted at forward post of Puna in this sector was critically injured.

Intelligence sources claimed that Indian trooper hawaldar Pachi Lakhar, of Five Assam Regiment posted at forward post of Puna in this sector was critically injured after receiving bullet injury due to firing by Pak army from across the LoC at around 11.30 am. The critically injured hawaldar was later flown to Command Hospital at Udhampur for specialised treatment.

"The Pakistani troops had beem monitoring the movement of hawaldar Pachi Lakhar since the early morning. At about 11.30 am when he came out of the post to fetch water for himself, the Pakistani troops first fired a volley of bullets at him to restrict his movement and later fired at him with Sniper rifle injuring the trooper critically", a local army source claimed.

Meanwhile, even as the intelligence sources claimed that the soldier was injured in Pakistani firing, defence spokesperson Lt-Col S.D.Goswami maintained that a forward post of the Army came under from militants.

In another alleged ceasefire violation, intelligence sources claimed that Pakistani troops fired at Pir post in Keri sector in Rajouri. However, same sources maintained that no loss of life was reported in the firing.

"Pakistani troops targeted Pir post in Keri sector Rajouri but no loss of life or property was reported in the firing", an intelligence source claimed.

Udhampur, July 18
One person was killed, while two others were injured today when militants attacked villagers, who had gone to collect “gucchies,” a costly wild herb, from the forest area of Sealdhar of Dodu Basantgarh in Udhampur district.

The villagers were members of the Village Defence Committee (VDC) of Duda area.

“Additional force had been rushed to the area to track down the militants involved in the incident”, Alok Puri, DIG, Udhampur-Reasi zone, told The Tribune. Puri added that the forest had been cordoned off and extra force had been deployed.

Police sources said Darshan Singh, Om Parkash and Kashmiri Singh, all residents of Thelu, had gone to the forest area to collect gucchies, where a group of militants was reportedly hiding.

The militants asked the three to carry their bags and guide them to a safe passage.

Instead of following the dictates of militants, the three dodged them and ran away. The militants chased the VDC members and resorted to indiscriminate firing, the police added.

While Kashmira Singh was killed in the incident, Darshan and Om Prakash sustained injuries.

Injured Darshan Singh managed to escape and reached the nearby BSF camp. Later, a joint team of the BSF along with the police rushed to the spot and recovered the body of Kashmira Singh.

Meanwhile, injured Om Parkash was also retrieved from the forest and shifted to a hospital.

Srinagar, July 18
The Jammu and Kashmir Government has ordered detachment of its gazetted and non-gazetted employees, who would have to report to their original places of postings with immediate effect.

This follows a directive from Governor N.N. Vohra, whose attention had been drawn by the people from various segments of the society during public hearings, complaining about the paucity of staff at various places all over the state, an official spokesman here said.

Accordingly, the officers and officials transferred along with the post from one office to another office would be reverted back to their original place of posting.

However, where attachments or transfers, along with the post, have been made by the government (Administrative Department), the administrative secretary concerned would place such cases before the Governor through the chief secretary for review.

The government has also directed the treasury officers not to entertain the salary bills of the government employees, who have been attached or transferred, along with the post, unless the report of their original place of posting certificate is not recorded by the drawing and disbursing officers on the monthly salary bill.

All the heads of the departments have been asked to submit a compliance report to the Administrative Department concerned regarding such detachments within a period of two weeks from the date of issue of the order, with a copy to the chief secretary. 

Srinagar, July 18
The unification talks between two Hurriyat factions have hit a wall with a number of top leaders of the moderate faction headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq finding it difficult to reconcile with the belligerent attitude of Syed Ali Shah Gilani, who heads the another faction.

What has added to discomfort of this group of separatists, which include their main leaders like Prof Abdul Ghani Bhat and Bilal Lone, is the recent veiled threat of Hizbul Mujahideen's supremo Syed Salahuddin to those who dither over unity process.

In an interview to a Kashmir-based news agency, Salahuddin said his outfit was watching those whose hearts were not with the unification process and “will adopt whatever means possible to take care of these leaders.”

His statement has made a majority of the 20-odd groups in Hurriyat (M) jittery and they have held informal meetings in the last few days. “We believe that it is a pressure tactic and some of us are apprehensive due to HM's intrusion into a political dialogue,” a Hurriyat leader told The Tribune.

The Hizbul Mujahideen is largely blamed for a number of political killings in the valley, the most high profile of them being the murder of Mirwaiz Moulvi Farooq, father of Mirwaiz Umar Farroq, in 1990.

Gilani wants the Hurriyat (M), which is much more representative in character than the faction headed by Gilani, to repudiate any bilateral dialogue with India and return to his hardline stand, which has no room for reconciliation.

Mirwaiz group had held talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and previous prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and is not averse to further talks if they are "meaningful".

The recent impasse in Kashmir over the issue of land transfer to the shrine board has given a boost to Gilani's extremist utterances and he has seized the moment. “The unification is possible only if the ideology is common,” he said recently.

Though Miwaiz's views over the discomfort of his constituents are not known, he wants to give the unification drive ample time before he takes a final decision, his associates said.

Another separatist leader Sajjad Lone, who is not part of any Hurriyat but considered closer to Mirwaiz faction, is also against joining hands with Gilani. His aversion to Gilani dates back to killing of his father Abdul Gani Lone, a senior Hurriyat leader, by Pakistan-backed militants in 2002.

Gilani in turn accused Sajjad Lone of fielding proxy candidates in the Assembly elections in 2002 and caused a split in the Hurriyat in September 2003.

Srinagar, July 18
All-Party Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq would visit New Delhi tomorrow to meet the Pakistan’s foreign secretary ahead of the two-day meeting of foreign ministers of India and Pakistan beginning in the union capital on Monday.

Speaking at the Jamia Masjid here today, Mirwaiz said during his meeting, he would apprise the people’s point of view and prevailing situation, especially human rights, in Jammu and Kashmir.

He added that since there was no representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir in the talks ahead between the two sides, his meeting with the Pak foreign secretary would help in putting forth the view point from this side.

This, he said, would help in a substantial forward movement on the Kashmir issue.

Referring to the ongoing confidence building process between the two neighbouring countries, Mirwaiz held that there was no change at the ground level situation in the state.

He also referred to the international response on the reports of hundreds of unmarked graves in north Kashmir.

Mirwaiz stressed the need for sincere and serious measures in the talks process to achieve result oriented progress on the long pending Kashmir issue between the two sides. He said the dialogue process has become slow.

Srinagar, July 18
Gujjars in the state have demanded that 21 constituencies of the State Assembly and 10 seats of the Legislative Council be reserved for the Scheduled Tribe communities on the pattern of Scheduled Caste.

A spokesman of the state wing of the Akhil Bharatiya Gujjar Maha Sabha said a delegation of Gujjars led by its president, Ashfaq-ur-Rehman Poswal, met Governor N.N. Vohra and apprised him of various problems being faced by tribal population in the state.

He urged the Governor to issue an SRO for “Political Reservation to ST communities”, including Gujjars, so that the community had a political voice. The delegation also opposed the proposal to consider Pahari-speaking people as STs saying the ST status could not be considered on the basis of language.

The delegation also apprised the Governor that Paharis were not tribals and were socially and economically well off and had no valid reasons for inclusion in the ST list.

They also demanded that in order to protect their identity and properties, Gujjars be categorised as a “religious minority” in the Jammu region and an “Ethno-Linguistic Minority” in the Kashmir valley.

The other demands put forth by the delegation included raising of Gujjar Regiment in the Army, allotment of land to rehabilitate nomadic Gujjars, inclusion of Gojri in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution, speedy implementation of developmental schemes and withdrawal of the order on closing forests to nomadic movement of Gujjars.

The other demands included introduction of cattle insurance schemes for Banharas and Bakerwals, enhancement of seats for Gujjars in professional colleges, relaxation of age bar in favour of Gujjar candidates in the police force, employment, etc.

Srinagar, July 18
Senior PDP leader and former minister Tariq Hameed Karra has accused the National Conference of resorting to its “traditional divisive tactics” of the pre-militancy era for electoral gains.

Karra, addressing a public meeting in Chrar-e-Sharief yesterday, referred to National Conference president Omar Abdullah’s recent proclamation on the incidents of violence and clashes at the martyr’s graveyard on Sunday.

The PDP leader took a strong exception to Omar’s remarks that the incidents were reminiscent of the pre-militancy era of Sher-Bakra tussle, saying this kind of approach brought into fore, the party’s (NC’s) perilous intentions.

“There are reports that the NC has even covertly started fueling Shia-Sunni and urban-rural split for electoral gains,” Karra, according to a PDP spokesman, said.

He added such a deceitful and hasty tactics of the NC would have disastrous consequences for the whole state. Urging the people not to get trapped in the NC’s treacherous dissentious trap, Karra said at a time when the state was trying to heal the wounds of the two-decade long political turmoil, any sinister move to divide the people ethnically would not only prove self-destructive, but could also impede the peaceful efforts aimed at the permanent settlement of the Kashmir issue.

Jammu, July 18
Almost 20 hours have passed since Sahil Khajuria (18) was lynched at Channi Himmat on the outskirts of the city yesterday, but the accused are still at large.

Police sources said Sahil was attacked by four persons with a sharp-edged weapon when was returning from tuition along with his two other friends. Sahil sustained multiple stab wounds and succumbed to his injuries at the GMC hospital at around 10.30 pm last night.

Sahil was a Class XII student and son of Dr Bhupesh Khajuria, head, forensic sciences department, Government Medical College (GMC).

A senior police officer on the condition of anonymity said, “We have arrested one Koushal Salathia, alias Billa, son of Karan Singh Salathia of Channi Himmat in this regard.”

Meanwhile, one Gagandeep Singh, a resident of Channi Himmat, who was reportedly accompanying Koushal Salathia at the time of incident, has also been arrested.

Police sources said they had also rounded up five persons in this regard.

However, Himmat Rafiq Choudhary, SHO, Channi, refused to divulge any details and said, “Investigations are going on.”

Meanwhile, Sahil’s body was cremated today.

Srinagar, July 18
In a suspected militant attack, one man was killed and his son injured in a blast in their house in Awantipora yesterday. The police said some suspicious material exploded in the premises of Mohammad Yousuf Bhat, who was killed on the spot.

His 12-year-son Mudasir Ahmad was critically injured in the blast. He was shifted to a hospital, Srinagar, where his condition is stated to be serious. The CRPF officials said they suspected that the family had kept the explosive at their home and it went off accidentally.