|
|
Sikhs’ plight in Pakistan
Identify accident-prone points: PDP
Schools closed in Kishtwar for 3rd day
Unity In Diversity |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Complete shutdown in valley
Vohra takes aerial survey of Pahalgam route
It was murder, not suicide
Gang of car thieves busted, 5 held
Contractors rue delay in payments
Militants ‘target’ IAF choppers
Sajad Lone holds road shows in Baramulla
People’s Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone flashes the victory sign during a road show at Uri in Srinagar on Wednesday. A Tribune photograph
NC ‘transporting’ bogus voters to Srinagar
Mufti defends his no-voting act, but wants Srinagar to vote
Class IX students await English textbooks
Panel sought to probe killing of Kashmiri Pandits
Minor girl commits suicide
Steps to boost cross-LoC trade soon
Gojri poet dead
|
|
Sikhs’ plight in Pakistan
Jammu, May 6 The saffron party also announced that it would support the protest. “Both the VHP and the BAJ have communicated to us that they have called a Jammu bandh on May 8 in protest against the situation created by the Taliban in the frontier region of Pakistan,” BJP spokesperson Ramesh Arora told mediapersons here. The Taliban has forced several Sikh families to leave their homes in the Aurakzai region after they failed to pay Rs 50,000,000 as ‘jaziya’. He said the bandh was called as an appeal to the Central government to exert pressure on Pakistan to “crush the nefarious activities of the Taliban.” Take up case with Pak: SP
The state unit of the Samajwadi Party (SP) has urged the Centre to take up strongly the issue of Sikhs being brutalized by the Taliban with Pakistan. The party passed a resolution at a meeting here today, asking the government to ensure that rights of the minorities were secure in conflict-ridden states of Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. In another resolution, the party asked the government to keep a close watch on all events unfolding in Nepal to arrest the feeling of mistrust erupting there. The party further alleged that it was because of the wrong policies of the UPA and NDA governments that led to strained relations with the neighbouring countries. |
|
Identify accident-prone points: PDP
Udhampur, May 6 A deputation led by party secretary and MLC Sayed Asgar Ali and party candidate for the Udhampur-Doda Lok Sabha seat Thakur Balbir Singh today called on the Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner and demanded a probe into the bus accident. PDP leaders pointed out that the road from Kishtwar to Palmar where the accident took place had been handed over to the NHPC but the latter had not shown any interest in improving the condition of the road. They demanded that this road should be handed over to the Roads and Buildings Department. Drawing attention of the authorities towards the shortage of passenger vehicles in this area, PDP leaders demanded the deployment of 25 seater mini-buses of the State Road Transport Corporation. They alleged that most of the passenger vehicles plying on the roads were defective and outdated. They demanded immediate withdrawal of all condemned and old passenger vehicles plying on the roads of erstwhile Doda district to avoid such mishaps. Earlier, PDP leaders visited the houses of deceased persons to offer their condolences to the bereaved families. They demanded Rs 5 lakh each for next of kin of the deceased passengers.
|
|
Schools closed in Kishtwar for 3rd day
Kishtwar, May 6 The teaching community of Kishtwar has already announced to observe a strike for four days against the death of their colleagues in the accident. The teachers today took out a procession and demanded the deployment of additional buses. People also joined the protesting teachers and the latter warned to intensify the on-going stir if some concrete steps were not taken to resolve the problem once and for all. The teachers demanded that an adequate and safe transport facility should be provided to the members of the teaching community deployed in far-flung areas. Meanwhile, resentment is brewing among residents of Kishtwar against what they alleged the callousness of the state government toward the families of the accident victims. They regretted that the government was yet to announce any relief for the families of the victims. |
|
Unity In Diversity
Mangnar (Poonch), May 6 This rare lesson in secularism and religious tolerance becomes even more important considering that the area has a predominantly Muslim populace. “This may look odd to you, but for the locals it is common that among six brothers, two are Sikhs and four Hindu Pandits,” says Harbhajan Singh, a Poonch-based cloth merchant. This small township on the outskirts of Poonch that has a population of about a thousand persons comprises about 80 per cent Hindus, little fewer than 20 per cent Sikhs and a handful of Muslims, though the neighbouring areas are predominantly Muslim. Though Mangnar has a mandir, masjid and a gurdwara, all in close proximity, the Hindus and Sikhs don’t think twice before going either to the mandir or a mosque, says Parshotam Lal. Rattling off the names of couples where the husband is a Sikh and wife a Hindu or vice versa, Ramesh Kumar says, “Rashpal Singh is married to Mohinder Devi (now Kaur). Out of six brothers of Rashpal Singh, four are Hindu Pandits and two Sikhs. Similarly, Joginder Singh is married to Sunita Devi, Nagam Singh married Basanti Devi and a school teacher Vijay Kumar tied the knot with Dode Kaur and the list is unending.” Durga Dass, a local shopkeeper, says that religion here does not hamper political thinking. The township has nearly 30 per cent families who came here as refugees from Pakistan and were allotted agriculture land in lie of the properties they left back in PoK. There are many divided families here with relatives on either side of the LoC. Parshotam Lal, who works in the Animal Husbandry Department, say that he has an uncle Tirath Ram across the LoC, but he has not been able to locate him so far.
|
|
Complete shutdown in valley
Srinagar, May 6 An electorate of 11,02,451 voters would decide the fate of 15 candidates, NC president Farooq Abdullah, his sister and ANC president Khalida Shah and PDP candidate Iftikhar Hussain Ansari. The police seized an IED fitted in an LPG cylinder near the Jamia Masjid this afternoon and averted a major tragedy on the eve of elections. The IED was defused and later destroyed by the bomb disposal squad. Suspected militants hurled a grenade towards a polling station in Nawab Bazar here this afternoon, which however, did not explode. The grenade was later destroyed. Heavy deployment of troops has been made in and around the capital city A complete shutdown was observed across the Kashmir valley in response to the 50-hour bandh call by the hardline faction of the APHC. The bandh call coupled with the boycott call of elections by both factions of the APHC began last evening and is scheduled to end at 6 p.m. tomorrow after the polling is over in the constituency. |
|
Amarnath Yatra
Srinagar, May 6 The Governor is likely to undertake an aerial survey and ground assessment of the Baltal route on Friday. It is envisaged that, based on consultations with all concerned, the date for the start of the yatra would be determined next week. According to an official spokesman, the Governor undertook an extensive survey in a helicopter of the track from Pahalgam to the holy cave. It was observed that while the road between Pahalgam and Chandanwari was operational, the entire track beyond Chandanwari was at present buried under heavy snow. All areas en route to the holy cave —Panchtarni, Sheshnag, Mahagunas Top, Pissu Top and Posh Pathri — are also under a thick snow cover and the Sheshnag lake is frozen. Later, the Governor landed at Pahalgam and travelled by road on the Pahalgam-Chandanwari stretch (13 km) to get a firsthand idea of the present status of the facilities in Pahalgam and Chandanwari sectors. He also interacted with district officers and received suggestions regarding additional facilities required for the smooth conduct of the yatra. While reviewing the on-going work on the widening and repair of the Pahalgam-Chandanwari road, he directed the PWD authorities to expedite the completion of all remaining works in a time-bound manner. |
|
|
Husband, in-laws rearrested
Udhampur, May 6 Surinder Gupta, Udhampur SSP, while confirming that the girl was murdered, told The Tribune that husband, sister-in-law and mother-in-law of the deceased, who were earlier released on bail, were rearrested by the police today as all of them now booked under section 302 of the RPC. Rajni Bala died under mysterious circumstances on March 9. Her body was found hanging from a ceiling fan in her in-laws house. Sunny Gupta, husband of the deceased, told the police that his wife had committed suicide Parents of the deceased smelt a foul play as the girl, who was married
just five months back, had repeatedly complained about atrocities of her husband and in-laws. Sahil, brother of the deceased, alleged that
his sister was tortured by her in-laws for dowry and she had already informed the family
about atrocities committed to her by her husband and other family members.
|
|
|
Gang of car thieves busted, 5 held
Jammu, May 6 The arrested gang members include a constable, a small-time businessman and a local key maker. The gang adopted a meticulous modus operandi to carry out the crime. “After observing the movement and parking of a particular vehicle for a few days, constable Shabir Ahmed Qureshi of Gunthal Surankote, who was suspended in a rape case last year, used to steal the car using a duplicate key made by Vinod Singh of Govindpura, Chatha,” said Manohar Singh, SSP, Jammu. The SSP said, “After stealing the vehicle, Shabir used to change its numberplate made by Vinod Singh.” He said Vinod used to keep a number of fake blank unsigned registration certificates carrying real engine numbers, chassis numbers and fake registration numbers. Later, the vehicles were delivered to Sheikh Wasim of Doabgah, Sopore, at present living in Sunjwan, Jammu, and Latif Ahmad Lone of Wagubh, Sopore. The duo than used to drive the cars to the valley and sell them to two notorious car dealers, namely Samir Jan Mir and Abdul Hamid Wani of Sopore. “All members of the gang except Vinod Singh have been arrested. On their disclosures, 19 vehicles stolen from different parts of Jammu city have been recovered,” the SSP said. He said, “Fake numberplates, unsigned and blank registration certificates, car jacking tools and other incriminating material have been seized from the possession of the car thieves.” |
|
|
Contractors rue delay in payments
Jammu, May 6 Every year before the release of the water, the department floats tenders to invite contractors to de-silt the canal so as water reaches to farmers in the entire belt of the Jammu region. However, the contractors who undertook the cleaning work rue that their last year’s dues are still pending with the department. The Ranbir Canal, which is considered as the lifeline of the Jammu region as its water is used for irrigation, is 60 km in length while its distribution system spans over 400 km. It has a gross command area of 1.67 lakh acres and a cultivable command area of 95,400 acres. The contractors say that the delay in releasing their payment badly hampers the cleaning work of the canal, which in turn results in supply of impure and filthy water to the farmers. “It takes over one year for the release of the payments of the work that we undertake. They release the payment in four phases; first in June, then in September, in December and finally in March next year,” a contractor told The Tribune. He said: “With the payments not being released the work gets hampered as we have to make payment for the machinery, to the labourers and for other things as well.” The contractors say that the Irrigation Department has not paid the last year’s dues despite the entire work being completed. So far, they haven’t received any instalments of the work they undertook this year. Minister for Irrigation and Flood Control Taj-Mohi-ud-din told The Tribune that the payment was released after the inspection by the engineer concerned. He, however, assured an inquiry into the matter. |
|
|
Militants ‘target’ IAF choppers
Srinagar, May 6 A circular was issued after the Central security agencies reported to the ministry about a hole in the tail of a Pathankot-based helicopter squadron, which had returned after a sortie from the Doda region, official sources said. A forensic examination of a hole on the side of tail-fin of the chopper left sleuths and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials zapped as it confirmed that it was caused by a bullet. It is suspected that the most probable location of firing was Doda in the state. The flight path of the helicopter was chalked out and it was found that it was flying over the jungles in Doda after which a conclusion was drawn that militants could have attempted to target the helicopter which was on a regular Pathankot-Kud-Mundhar-Batot sortie, the sources said. The Home Ministry asked state police chiefs to ensure proper flight path and securing helipads properly and also to take extra precautions by deploying quick-reaction teams in case of a VIP. While emphasising that the helicopters were an important link during the rescue operations, the ministry asked the Army to carry out combing operations of various jungles where militants were suspected to be holed up. While some of the IAF officials chose not to comment on the issue, officials in the Police Department said this was possibly the first time that a helicopter had been hit by bullets during sortie. The ministry asked the state for sanitisation of helipads and a proper briefing to IAF pilots should be given. —
PTI |
|
|
Sajad Lone holds road shows in Baramulla
Uri (Baramulla), May 6 It was his first visit to Uri township near the LoC today, attracting hundreds of people while life was paralysed in most parts of the valley in response to the separatists’ bandh call ahead of tomorrow’s elections to the Srinagar constituency. “I am here for the first time. I joined politics after the death of my father. My name is Sajad Ghani Lone… you know my father had been coming here…,” he told the gathering in the Uri market from the top of a Tata Sumo vehicle. His caravan of vehicles had started from Srinagar early this morning and held two road shows on the way between Baramulla and Uri at a distance of about 40 km. “The People’s Conference had decided to participate in the elections after 22 years. But we have not changed our ideology… I will raise my voice for the rights of Kashmiris and to resolve Kashmir issue in the Parliament,” he said this while addressing the gathering. Lone made a scathing attack on PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed for his role in “torturing” separatist leaders during their detention in the Jodhpur jail in early 1990s. “I do not speak against the PDP and the NC, but it is up to you to decide on voting the candidate for LS,” he told the gathering.
|
|
|
NC ‘transporting’ bogus voters to Srinagar
Srinagar, May 6 In a letter to the EC, Ansari claimed that he had credible reports that the NC government had lodged bogus voters in various parts of the Srinagar city with Rajbagh, Bemina and Miskeen Bagh being some of the areas where the bogus voters have already been brought. “Transporting such a large number of bogus voters to Srinagar is sufficiently indicative of the state government’s designs. I have reports that besides NC leaders, some elements in the government are also playing a dubious role in the use of bogus voters for polling in Srinagar,” he said. |
|
|
Mufti defends his no-voting act, but wants Srinagar to vote
Srinagar, May 6 But when it comes to his vote and that of his daughter, Mehbooba Mufti, he contradicts his own stand, saying that “One vote does not make any difference.” Mufti and his daughter had failed to turn up for voting in the Anantnag LS elections on April 30. And yet, the Muftis don’t think of it as much of an issue, blaming NC’s criticism of their no-voting act on general starvation for real issues. “One vote does not make any difference where three lakh people have voted. I was the one to mobilise thousands of people to come out and vote,” The Mufti told The Tribune. That the PDP founder is unimpressed by actor Aamir Khan’s “eight-hour run to Mumbai to exercise his adult franchise” is evident as he says he did not vote because he would have had to travel for three hours to Bijbehera in Anantnag to do that. So he chose to be in Srinagar and work against the Hurriyat’s boycott calls (the opposition has been blaming the Mufti for helping enforce the Hurriyat call in Anantnag by not voting). But security apparently was another concern for the Mufti that day. “There were rumours of the NC having deployed several Special Protection Officers in Anantnag. We were apprehensive of their intentions; they could have been up to some mischief. Everyone in the party advised me against travelling to Anantnag. Mehbooba was in Delhi,” the Mufti said. Whatever be the case, the NC has been ensuring that the issue remains alive. First, both CM Omar Abdullah and his father, Farooq Abdullah, NC’s candidate from Srinagar, issued statements denouncing the Muftis’ act. Then, they made the matter an integral part of their election rhetoric in Srinagar and Baramulla, which will vote on May 13. The Mufti dismisses the allegations, saying that “the NC has no other poll issues. How many political leaders before me and my daughter have been in the news for casting or not casting their vote?” he asks. |
|
|
Class IX students await English textbooks
Jammu, May 6 Though the authorities had assured that all books would be delivered to the students on time, some students were yet to receive textbooks. “The first unit test is scheduled to be conducted by the end of this month. One can imagine the state of mind of the class IX students who have to appear in the first unit test soon. How can they fare well in the tests without books?”, asked Anuradha Talwar, whose son is a class IX student in a government school. Talking to The Tribune, a score of students of class IX complained of not having received the English textbooks so far. “It is learnt that in the absence of textbooks the authorities have now decided to take the first unit test in English B paper (i.e English grammar) only,” said a student. Chairman, Board of School Education, Prof Deshbandhu said, “Publishing a book according to the new syllabus is always time consuming. But now books are available in the market.” |
|
|
Panel sought to probe killing of Kashmiri Pandits
Jammu, May 6 He demanded an inquiry commission to find out the root cause of the displacement of Kashmiri Pandits on a large scale so that a sincere effort could be made toward their dignified rehabilitation in the valley. KN Pandit also pointed out that the state was not covered under the jurisdiction of the Minority Commission. Pointing toward the ironical approach adopted by successive state governments, he said, “Late Chief Minister Sheikh Abdullah asked for the implementation of Article 370 to protect the rights of the Muslim majority in the state, but no mechanism was evolved to protect the minorities.” “That is why the Kashmiri Pandits were left high and dry.” It was on the suggestion of KN Pandit, a former head of the department for Central Asian studies, Kashmir University, the UN Human Rights Council amended the definition of “minority” by including regional minorities, which are in majority at the national level. He had been representing human rights issues to the UN in the past. He also asked for reservation for Kashmir Pandits in Parliament so that they could have representation in the government. He said the government had reserved 20 Parliament seats for PoK residents, who never returned to India, but not a single seat for Kashmiri Pandits. Talking about the elections, KN Pandit said it was a highly sensitive and worrisome issue that the vote bank of Kashmir Pandits, who make up for seven per cent of the state population, was shrinking fast. “The Election Commission should allow ration cards, which have photo and other details, as ID card for voting.” |
|
|
Minor girl commits suicide
Srinagar, May 6 In another incident, a 15-year-old boy was arrested on charges of raping a four-year-old child in Baramulla district. Bashir Ahmad Bhat was arrested from his house at Aadipora village of Kunzar after a complaint was registered against him by a woman, the police said. Ameena, mother of the victim who resides in the same village, lodged a complaint with the Kunzar police station last evening, alleging that Bhat had raped her four-year-old daughter on May 3, the police said. —
PTI |
|
|
Steps to boost cross-LoC trade soon
Srinagar, May 6 Reviewing various aspects of the cross-LoC trade here today, the Chief Secretary said the Union Ministry for Commerce had released Rs 2 crore for developing adequate infrastructure at the trading facilitation centres (TFCs) at Salamabad in Baramulla district and Chakkan-da-Bagh in Poonch district. The meeting discussed various issues necessary for making the trade a success, an official spokesman said. The meeting was told that the outward movement of vehicles must be reported at both TFCs a day in advance by 11.30 am to facilitate the custodian authorities to unload and reload cargo before the departure time. The meeting also discussed measures to be taken to change the present barter system and stressed to put in place a system that was convenient for the traders. The participants were told that J&K Bank had offered its services and could be opted for. The matter regarding telecommunication facilities between the traders on both sides was also discussed. Keeping in view the handling capacity at the TFC, Salamabad, it was decided that 50 truckloads a day would be allowed at the trading centre for further departure to the other side and the timing at the Kaman post and Chakan-da-Bagh would be extended from 9 am to 1 pm against the present timing of 9 am to 11 am. The drivers were required to be present at the TFC a day in advance and the credentials of the drivers would be forwarded to the security agencies for verification. Rajouri: Meanwhile, traders from India and the PoK exchanged goods worth crores of rupees as part of the weekly cross-LoC trade through the Poonch-Rawalkote road this evening. Sources in the district administration, which facilitated the exchange of goods at Chakkan-da-Bagh along the Poonch-Rawalkote road, told The Tribune that on the second day of the weekly trade, traders exchanged goods worth crores of rupees. Onion and mango comprised the main items that were exported by the Indian traders. |
|
|
Gojri poet dead
Jammu, May 6 In 1987, the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages had awarded Hussan for his extraordinary contribution in the field of Gojri literature. Hussan was also instrumental in leading a movement for the rights of Gujjars in Jammu and Kashmir in the late twenties. —
TNS |
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
Uri (Baramulla), May 6
