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Voters pour out in border areas
Voters sidestep Amarnath land row in Samba
45,000 troops deployed
They vote to focus on border fence issue
50 pc voting by Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu
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55 pc polling in phase VII
Low voting in separatist hub
A victory for democracy, says Vohra
Governor sends X’mas
March to Lal Chowk foiled
136 passengers airlifted
Most newspapers fail to hit stands
BJP Kashmiri Pandit candidates cry foul
25 missing persons traced
PG students support demand for ‘open choice’
10 kg IED seized
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Voters pour out in border areas
Even as farmers turned up in a large number in this border village to exercise their franchise amid the apprehension of mounting tension between India and Pakistan leading to war or a war-like situation, the disenchantment with the political parties was writ large on their faces.
When The Tribune asked them if they were unhappy with the parties and what brings them to the polling booth in cold weather and dense fog, they said, “Our MLA may not be doing anything for our village, but he is the one whom we approach in the hour of need and hence we are voting.” Megh Raj, a farmer having five acres adjoining the fence along the border, rued “while the successive state governments have been indifferent toward our plight, none of the political parties bothered to disclose their policies and programmes for farmers, particularly those living in the border areas. We had a tough time getting seeds and fertilisers this time and we ended up paying more for them. On the other hand, when it comes to selling our agricultural produce, what we get is peanuts.” Diwan Singh, a farmer displaced from the Chhamb sector during the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, lamented that the government allotted him a three-acre plot, which is a custodian property. “I can only cultivate the land, but can neither sell it nor mortgage it to meet any emergency need. I can also not procure loan for purchasing a tractor against the land allotted.” The successive governments made tall claims of uplifting farmers, but the ground reality was quite different, he said. The farmers flayed the government for turning a blind eye to the border villages in key areas like education and health. “We pay Rs 2 for the slip in our dispensary, but it doesn’t have any medicine even worth Rs 2 for us. Our children cannot have higher education here and the closest destination for it is Jammu, which is three hours’ journey from here.” However, the border farmers said the escalating tension between the two neighbours would not impact their voting pattern as none of the political parties was concerned about their problems. “Every political party has its own agenda and they are not ready to listen to our woes. In such a situation, we are left with no option but to vote for the candidate having the maximum chance of winning,” said Daulat Ram, another farmer. Meanwhile, the farmers said, “We know that the tension between India and Pakistan can lead to any eventuality and we are preparing ourselves for it. We hope that war does’t take place.” |
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Voters sidestep Amarnath land row in Samba
Samba/Bishnah, December 24 Talking to The Tribune after exercising his franchise, Sanotkh Ram, a painter, said, “No doubt the people were united during the Amarnath land agitation days, but it was not an issue for them during the elections. Everybody has his own interests. While some vote on the local issues, others watch their personal interests.” Mohit Gupta, a first-time voter in Samba, echoed similar sentiments. “The land row is not an issue in these elections”, he said. Avtar Singh, a farmer from Ramgarh in the Vijaypur segment, said, “Our MLA did a lot of development works and we will vote for him. The land row may be an issue for others, is not for us.” According to him, there may have been negative voting over the land row. “I don’t know about the people supporting the land cause, but there are people who would have given a negative vote on it, as the ones like daily wage earners and shopkeepers suffered huge losses during the agitation.” Interestingly, in the Bishnah Assembly seat, where Shilpi Verma, widow of Kuldeep Verma who was the first victim of the agitation, is in the fray, the people appeared little concerned about the issue. “I also took part in the agitation, but these elections are for redressing problems of our daily lives. I will cast my vote for development while looking at the merit of the candidate,” said Basant Sharma. Sito Devi, a supporter of the cause, lamented, “Though people put up a united front during the agitation, as soon as the elections were announced their priorities changed, which was unfortunate.”
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45,000 troops deployed
Jammu, December 24 Besides deploying additional forces in the constituencies along the international border, over 45,000 troops have been deployed at various polling stations in Jammu city and on its outskirts. “Tight security arrangements have been made in entire Jammu and Samba districts for a violence free and fair conduct of the last phase,” IG, Jammu Zone, K. Rajindera told UNI. Rajindera said, “Over 300 companies of paramilitary forces, including the CRPF, CISF, SSB, BSF, JKAP and the RPF, are on their toes and keeping vigil for successful completion of the last phase.” He, however, said in the wake of the Mumbai terrorist attack the security on the border had also been strengthened and both Punjab Police and BSF were jointly guarding the border belt. In the 2002 Assembly elections, a group of fidayeens infiltrated from the Hiranagar sector in Kathua district on the
day of polling and killed around 12 persons and were later eliminated by the security forces
in a two-day long operation. — UNI |
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They vote to focus on border fence issue
Suchetgarh, December 24 “Though a month back the BSF had started relocating the fence close to the Zero Line, at least 100 hectares of land from Korotana Khurd to Nai Basti still remains across the fence making it very difficult for cultivation,” Chuni Lal, a 55-year old farmer, in Suchetgarh said. The BSF, in 2001, had started the fencing work on 187-km-long international border so as to effectively check the infiltration bids by Pakistani militants. However, vast chunk of agricultural land was fenced out in the process. “Though we feel safe and secure ever since the fence came up, some of us lost their entire land to it, Chuni Lal said. Suchetgarh alone had 71 families whose lands measuring nearly 45 hectares had been fenced out, village Numberdar Haveli Ram said. Balwant Raj, another farmer from Korotana Khurd, said: “If farming had been a casualty from 1992 to 2002 because of frequent arms fire trading between the two countries, then unplanned fencing too has added to our woes.” Despite the fact that the BSF had set up gates fixing timings from 9 am to 4 pm for us to go to our fields on other side, we had not been able to obtain maximum yield for varied reasons,
he added. |
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50 pc voting by Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu
Jammu, December 24 According to Vinod Kaul, Relief & Rehabilitation Commissioner, 3,326 of the 6,606 votes were cast by displaced Kashmiri Pandits here for eight constituencies in the Kashmir valley. The consitutencywise breakdown is 316 out of 601 in Hazratbal, 34 out of 55 in Zadibal, 19 out of 85 in Idgah, 347 out of 536 in Khanyar, 1,816 out of 3,960 in Habbakadal, 446 out of 801 in Amirakadal, 157 out of 238 in Sonawar, and 191 out of 370 votes in Batamallo. Reacting to the polling percentage, Sanjay Kachroo, Kashmiri Pandit candidate from Sonawar, who was expecting good polling in favour of Kashmiri Pandits, was little disappointed. "Only 12 per cent voters came out to vote in my constituency despite the fact that former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah is also in the fray. This shows the lackadaisical attitude of urban voters towards the Chief Ministerial candidate of the NC and the polling process as a whole," he said. Similarly, Parikshit Koul, Kashmiri Pandit candidate from Amira Kadal, complained of excessive security barricades posing problems for voters in reaching their constituencies. " Voters were held up and tormented for identity verification and other formalities by police personnel for hours together at different barricades. This hampered their free mobility." |
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55 pc polling in phase VII
Srinagar, December 24 With this, the seven-phase elections to the 87-member House have reported over 61 per cent turnout as compared to 43 per cent in 2002. Chief Electoral Officer BR Sharma said that the average poll percentage in today’s elections in 21 constituencies, eight in Srinagar, 11 in Jammu and two in Samba, was tentatively put at 54 per cent, which was likely to go up. This has been the biggest phase of the elections in which heavy polling was registered in Jammu and Samba districts, the CEO said. Over 3,000 migrant voters also exercised their franchise for the eight constituencies of Srinagar district at Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi, BR Sharma said. There were at least seven incidents of clashes between anti-election protesters and security personnel and stone pelting, heated exchanges between representatives of different political parties or agents or miscreants. About 15 persons, including police personnel and civilians, were injured in these incidents. The police had to lob tear gas shells and fire in the air at several places to quell the demonstrators and maintain law and order. The police fired in the air in the Hazratbal constituency to quell the demonstrators and ensure smooth polling at Polling booth No: 72, the CEO said. Such incidents were also reported from the Eidgah, Amirakadal Batmaloo and Sonawar constituencies. There were also allegations of rigging, bogus voting and other irregularities in parts of Srinagar district. Though the overall voting in the Jammu region was peaceful, there were stray incidents of clashes between rival parties in some areas, officials said. In Srinagar, the Hazratbal constituency registered 26.5 per cent voting , followed by Zadibal(16.6 per cent) Idgah(13.3), Khanyar(16.54), Habbakadal (11.28), Amirakadal (13.5), Sonawar( 33.64) and Batamaloo (18.6). The total percentage of 20 per cent has been more than 5.06 per cent of polling in the 2002 elections in which the percentage in these constituencies was only in the single digit, Sharma said. The 11 constituencies of Jammu district, which registered over 68 per cent turnout, Nagrota registered 73 per cent, Gandhi Nagar 63, Jammu East 61, Jammu west 60, Bishnah 72, R S Pura 75, Suchetgarh 70, Madh 72, Raipur Domana 70, Akhnoor 75 and Chhamb 77. The Samba and Vijaypur constituencies registered 78 per cent and 73 per cent polling, respectively. |
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Low voting in separatist hub
Srinagar, December 24 The boycott mood was predominant in the pockets that top the list of hostile areas for mainstream parties. At a polling booth in Maisuma, the address of JKLF chairman Yaseen Malik, only eight persons had cast their votes with only half an hour of polling left while only 22 of the 995 voters reached three booths in Kothibag. In the summer capital, none of the eight constituencies had polled even 10 per cent in 2002. As one left the main city behind, voters' queues were visible everywhere. If urban Batmaloo kept away from booths, people went in droves to vote in Parimpora. In Maloora village of jailed separatist leader Ayaz Akbar, the right-hand man of Hurriyat hawk Syed Ali Shah Geelani, voters thronged booths that had worn deserted looks last time. "Tariq Qarra (ex-minister and PDP candidate) made roads and brought us electricity. We have to support him," Abdul Hamid (28) said. The peripheral areas falling in the constituencies of Sonawar, Batmaloo, Hazratbal witnessed brisk-to-moderate polling. |
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A victory for democracy, says Vohra
Srinagar, December 24 In a message here this evening, he said despite many constraints, difficulties and threats, the high voter turnout in the just concluded seven-phase Assembly elections was a clear victory of the large majority who wished the restoration of peace and normalcy. “Democracy has triumphed yet again,” the Governor said while complimenting the people for exercising their franchise, despite inclement weather and varied threats. He observed that the people had evinced clear unwillingness to be taken for granted or exploited and pushed around in the name of region or religion. Vohra also complimented the state administration, the police and the Central police forces for their sustained devotion to creating a peaceful environment for the successful conduct of free and fair polls. |
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Governor sends X’mas greetings
Jammu, December 24 "The apostle of peace, Jesus Christ, preached love, compassion and brotherhood and established an enlightened social order. His teachings were more relevant now than ever before, as the obtaining societal structures were ridden by hate, greed, intolerance and violence," he said. |
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March to Lal Chowk foiled
Srinagar, December 24 Sources said a BSF jawan was hit by a bullet when an unidentified gunman in a separatists’ mob fired from a pistol in the Karan Nagar area of the Batmaloo constituency. They said the crowd gathered outside a polling station housing booth Nos. 91, 92 and 93 and began pelting the paramilitary contingent with stones. As the forces charged to disperse them, somebody from the crowd fired, injuring a jawan. The BSF fired 50-odd rounds of bullets in the air to scare the protesters away. The condition of the injured jawan is stable. At least eight persons were injured when the separatists clashed with security forces in some areas of Habba Kadal and Khanyar. In a few isolated places, the authorities had to impose curfew to control the situation. Barring these few incidents, there was no major mobilisation of separatists and their supporters for the Lal Chowk march. The Lal Chowk area remained quiet through the day with security personnel guarding the entire area to deal with any untoward situation. The separatists also clashed with security forces in the Bogwanpora area of Iddgah and three persons, including a CRPF jawan, were injured. Most of the other towns in Kashmir remained shut. Reports from Anantnag, Sopore, Baramulla and Pulwama said markets were closed and people remained indoors. The authorities had also imposed restrictions on the movement of people due to polling in Kashmir. |
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136 passengers airlifted
Srinagar/Jammu, December 24 Around 58 residents of the border town of Gurez, who were stranded in Bandipore, were airlifted, an official spokesman said. The residents were stranded due to the heavy snowfall, blocking the highway from Bandipore to Gurez over the Rajdhani Pass. Similarly, 78 stranded passengers were airlifted from Bandipora to Gurez in MI-17 planes of the IAF, the spokesman said. Gurez, situated near the line of control, is cut off from the rest of the state by road due to the recent snowfall in the area. Meanwhile, the air force courier service for airlifting passengers from Jammu to Kargil would commence from December 27 to redress the grievances of the stranded Kargil-bound passengers. This was decided at a meeting chaired by adviser to Governor C. Phunsog here today. He said two sorties of the air force courier service on Saturday and Tuesday for airlifting passengers from Jammu to Kargil would be operated on weekly basis. The Disaster Management Committee also met today to discuss ways to provide food and shelter to the stranded passengers in case of heavy snowfall in the area, he said. The Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Department would make available sufficient quantity of rice, atta, sugar and kerosene oil to meet the requirements at prominent halting stations on the highway like Qazigund, Lower Manda, Vessu, Nasu Badergund and Saidawara, he said. The Health Department had also been alerted to keep medicines, doctors and paramedics available at Chak-i-Wangund, Zig Lower Manda and Qazigund with ambulances to provide medicare to the stranded passengers. — PTI |
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Most newspapers fail to hit stands
Srinagar, December 24 Out of about three dozen local newspapers, only half a dozen daily papers were published today. “We could not distribute our newspapers published yesterday because of restriction,” Kashmir Press Association (KPA) president Ghulam Hassan Kaloo said. He said no paper was distributed within the city yesterday nor any paper dispatched to districts. Kaloo said majority newspapers decided not to publish today’s newspapers to avoid any further loss. However, Srinagar Times, Daily Aftab, Daily Nadai-e-Mashriq, Daily Uqab and Roshi were published today. The leading English daily Greater Kashmir and its sister publication Daily Uzma were also not published today. However, they were available on the net to readers across the globe. Newspapers from Jammu could not be distributed because of the restrictions and strike. — UNI |
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BJP Kashmiri Pandit candidates cry foul
Jammu, December 24 Parikshit Koul, BJP candidate from Amira Kadal, said: “This gambit can make a big difference. With franchise of postal ballots being exercised by very few voters due to the cumbersome process associated with completing all the formalities, even a single postal ballot matters a lot. The ARO, who is hand in glove with the nefarious elements, has done major goof-ups.” Loopholes pervading in the postal ballot system make it vulnerable for further exploitation. Explains Vir Saraf, election in-charge of KP candidates: “It is easy to flout rules as the ARO, Jammu, is not supposed to keep intact the envelopes of postal ballots that carry the stamp of post office. These documents are cleverly mixed up with fake ballot papers received by hand even after the deadline is over. On the counting day, all these ballot papers are taken into reckoning and cost dear to the fair and honest candidates." Saraf has registered a complaint on the issue with the state Election Commission. Despite repeated attempts, the ARO Jammu could not be contacted but relief and rehabilitation commissioner Vinod Kaul said: “The observer himself was present till the last day of receiving these forms on December 18 and no question arises on receiving postal ballots after the expiry of the deadline.” To ensure transparency in the entire matter, Kaul gave the figures of total postal ballots received in the above-mentioned constituencies. |
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25 missing persons traced
Leh, December 24 Sources said as many as 30 persons, 19 of them students, went missing on December 18. However, a PTI report said a group of 29 people left Rangdum on foot for Kargil on December 18 when entire area received heavy snowfall and roads were closed. The rescue operation is still on as the rescue team could not find the five missing persons. |
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PG students support demand for ‘open choice’
Jammu, December 24 President, Jammu University Research Scholars Executive Association, Vikas Sharma led the protest rally that went around the campus and culminated near the administration block. The students also raised slogans against the vice-chancellor. They also submitted a memorandum to the vice-chancellor and threatened to intensify their struggle if the open choice was not given within stipulated time. “Working days in the varsity have been reduced to five from six while most of the holidays have not been abolished as was promised by the varsity. Therefore, teachers are trying to complete the syllabus in haste,” the students alleged. The Progressive Students’ Association
(PSA) said any relaxation in examination rules is “unjustified and illogical”. The body demanded deferment of the scheduled exam dates till the syllabus was completed without “putting extra burden on the
students”. PSA president Rahul said the association was going to hold “open discussion” to decide over the course of action and a general body meeting would be held on Friday on the university campus. Meanwhile, addressing a press conference, ABVP state secretary Suresh Magotra demanded that the students who had cleared BA, BSc first year (re-evaluation) this month must be enrolled for the second semester without any further delay. He stated that the students’ association was going to organise a dharna on December 26 outside the Governor’s residence. |
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10 kg IED seized
Jammu, December 24 Troops of the Rashtriya Rifles seized the cache by roadside in the Loni Dharman-Samote area on the Rajouri-Budhal road around 7 pm yesterday, he said. The cache also included one Chinese hand grenade and 23 rounds of AK rifle ammunition, he said, adding that search was on for ultras. — PTI |
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