Srinagar, October 6
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today said the Centre had taken various measures through the eight-point package to restore confidence among the people and hoped that the appointment of interlocutors would help bridge the gap.

Addressing the state Assembly on the prevailing situation in Kashmir, the Chief Minister hoped that the appointment of interlocutors, as envisaged by the government following the recent visit of the all-party delegation, would be made keeping in view the seriousness of the issue.

He hoped that the would-be interlocuters might consult different sections of people in the state.

Assuring that justice would be done to kin of those killed in the four-month turmoil, Omar said it was also necessary to take political dialogue forward.

He thanked the people of Jammu for having maintained peace and harmony during the unrest.

He said as long as “protest calendars”, being issued by the hardline Hurriyat leaders, were released, the danger would continue. The security forces had been asked to minimise force and maintain restraint, he said.

Omar, however, lamented the role of the Central government while handling the recent situation in Kashmir which had given the impression that the remote control of the state government was in the hands of the Centre.

He referred to the Union Home Secretary’s announcement regarding the lifting of the curfew in parts of the Valley, which had damaged certain institutions in the state administration.The decisions about lifting or the imposition of the curfew were taken not even at the level of the DGP or Chief Secretary, but at the level of local police officers, Omar said.

Referring to the eight-point package, he said only seven points had been discussed with him, while that of the reopening of schools had not figured in the discussions. “We had already taken a decision at our level about the reopening of schools in some urban areas here,” Omar said.

Describing Jammu and Kashmir as an “outstanding issue”, Omar sought to resolve it through sustained external and internal dialogue between India and Pakistan and with those having voices of dissent in the state.

He said Kashmir was a “much larger issue” between the two neighbouring countries. “It is an outstanding issue which needs to be resolved”, Omar commented and stressed the need for addressing the issue both at the external and internal levels. “This has to be solved by all (within) with the neighbour till there is an acceptable agreement”, he said.

Referring to the BJP comparing the state with Junagarh and Hyderabad, Omar said the state had acceded to India but not merged with it. He made it clear that in the case of those states, there was accession and merger and said: “We have not taken accession back”.

He held that provocative slogans would continue to be raised by separatists in Kashmir as long as the issue was not resolved. “It will be solved only when Delhi holds a dialogue on both the tracks with Pakistan and Kashmir and finds a solution”, he commented. Even if issues like development, employment, “pani, bijli and sadak” were addressed, the Kashmir issue would remain there.

He asserted that the Centre had admitted from time to time that Kashmir was an issue when it talked to Pakistan and signed various agreements like that in Shimla, Lahore and Agra.

He also disagreed with the view that the PDP, which had boycotted the session, was responsible for the recent trouble. “They (Opposition) benefited from it”, the Chief Minister said, and added that it did not contribute in restoring normalcy. 

Jammu, October 6
After submitting a memorandum to the all-party delegation which visited the state last month, newly-appointed Pradesh Youth Congress (PYC) chief Shoaib Nabi Lone has triggered a controversy by opposing the shifting of the Darbar Move from Srinagar to Jammu this year.

Although Lone clarified that his statement was misquoted and misinterpreted, dissidents have trained their guns at him. They have demanded that he should be sacked for giving such controversial statements which were against the ideology of the Congress.

The PYC chief convened a press conference early today to clarify his position. He said Darbar Move was a tradition and he had never demanded its deferment.

Opposition parties also have taken a serious note of the statement and alleged that he had been speaking on the issue to appease separatists.

“The statement of the Youth Congress chief speaks volumes about the pro-Kashmir mindset of the Congress leadership,” said Shamsher Singh Manhas, state president of the BJP, who alleged that despite having won the maximum Assembly seats from the Jammu region, the Congress leadership had been protecting the interest of only separatists and other forces.

“It is high time for people of the Jammu region to frustrate the evil designs of the Congress,” Manhas said.

Smelling a deep-rooted conspiracy in the whole episode, the BJP president observed that Congress leaders had been deliberately giving such controversial statements and denying them later to hoodwink the people.

Not only the Opposition,but also a group within the Congress had taken a serious note of the “immature” statements of the Youth Congress chief. “Lone should immediately resign from his post as his statements are proving detrimental to the party,” said Balwinder Singh Sambyal, chairman of the Congress Seva Dal.

“If Lone is so desperate to serve the cause of the Hurriyat Conference, he should first resign from the Congress ”, added Sambyal, urging the party leadership to take action against him for making such an irresponsible statement.

Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief and former Union Minister Saifuddin Soz made it clear that there was no question of the Congress seeking a deferment of the Darbar Move practice in the state. He, however, said, “I don’t know in which context Lone had given such a statement.”

Controversies are not new to Lone, as he was widely criticised for submitting a memorandum to the all-party delegation in which he had demanded the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, despite knowing that the Congress had officially opposed such a demand.

Srinagar, October 6
Senior National Conference MLA Mustafa Kamal has blamed the hardline and the moderate factions of the Hurriyat Conference and the PDP for the four-month-long turmoil in the Kashmir valley which has led to the death of 110 persons and caused a heavy damage to public property.

Speaking during the discussion on the Valley situation in the state Assembly here today,he also blamed the Centre for deceiving the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the state leadership.

Mustafa Kamal said the hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman, Syed Ali Geelani, was raising “Azadi” slogans even while remaining a member of the Assembly.

Referring to the PDP’s role, he blamed former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed for the imposition of Governor’s rule in the state a number of times in the past. The appointment of Jagmohan as the Governor during Mufti’s tenure as Union Home Minister,the resultant deaths in Kashmir early in 1990s and the extension of AFSPA to the state were all because of the PDP patron, the NC MLA claimed.

The moderate Hurriyat faction led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was also responsible for the prevalent situation, Mustafa Kamal said, and added this was because of the old rivalry between the Mirwaiz and Abdullah families. Earlier, members from different parties participated in the discussion.

Srinagar, October 6
While no curfew restrictions were imposed in any part of the Kashmir valley today, life was adversely affected due to the bandh called by the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference.

All shops and business establishments remained closed across the Valley. The Hurriyat Conference faction led by Syed Ali Geelani has been spearheading the agitation with the issuance of protest calendars against the alleged atrocities by the security forces. It had earlier issued a 10-day calendar from September 27 till today.

It has already come out with a fresh protest calendar, which will be implemented from tomorrow till October 16.

The Hurriyat had exempted transport services from the bandh in view of the annual Urs of Sheikh Noor-ud-Din that was observed today as the government had ordered a holiday on the occasion.

However, some private schools were open.

The police here said while the curfew restrictions across the Valley were lifted,these continued in the Palhalan area of Baramulla.

In the morning, some miscreants resorted to stone throwing at Kara lane in Batamaloo. However, they were chased away by the police. 

Jammu, October 6
The Directorate of Students Welfare and Rinchen Zangpo Art Gallery, University of Jammu, in association with the NSS wing of the university organised the first inter-college slogan-writing competition on peace, harmony and non-violence yesterday.

The function was held in connection with the ongoing week-long celebration of Gandhi Jayanti.

The first prize was bagged by Samridhi Sharma of Government College for Women, Gandhi Nagar. The second prize was won by Mahak Devi of SPMR College of Commerce and Megha Jain, DDE, University of Jammu. Khyam from the department of sociology, University of Jammu, won the third prize. — TNS

Jammu, October 6
The Department of Posts today released a set of four postage stamps on “Princely States of India” as a curtainraiser to INDIPEX 2011, the World Philatelic Exhibition.

The exhibition is scheduled to be held in Delhi in February next year.

YPS Mohan (VSM), Chief Postmaster-General, Jammu and Kashmir Circle, was the chief guest on the occasion.

These stamps were formally released by the chief guest at a function organised at Head Post Office, Gandhi Nagar.

Talking to The Tribune, Mohan said the set of postage stamps were issued by the princely states of Sirmour, Indore, Bamra and Cochin.

“These stamps are both archaic and rare and highly valued by philatelists all over the world,” he said.

The stamps carried the portraits of the kings and princes or royal symbol.

While saying such historical postage stamps revealed the history of the state, the chief guest announced to hold state-level exhibition in Jammu soon. “We will display all the ancient postage stamps in the exhibition which will highlight the history of the state,” he said.

Jammu, October 6
The mother of Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad and wife of late Khawaja Rehamatullah, Razia Begum, died this morning after a brief illness.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, his Cabinet colleagues, former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayed, leaders of parties, senior police and civil officers attended the funeral of Razia Begum at the Gujjar Nagar graveyard this afternoon.

Omar and Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand visited the residence of Ghulam Nabi Azad to express condolences.

The Chief Minister, along with Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone and many Cabinet Ministers, attended the Nimaz-e-Jenaza of the deceased at the graveyard.

Former Chief Minister and patron of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Mufti Mohammad Sayed, and president of the PDP Mehbooba Mufti, too, condoled the death.

Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Saif ud Din Soz, in a message, expressed his sorrow at the death. A condolence meeting was held at the Congress headquarters under the chairmanship of Dharma Pal Sharma.

Srinagar: Governor NN Vohra on Wednesday mourned the death of the mother of Ghulam Nabi Azad.

In his message, the Governor expressed sympathies with Azad and other members of the bereaved family.

A two-minute silence was also observed in the state Assembly soon after it assembled here. The Speaker, Mohammad Akbar Lone, led the House in expressing sympathies with the bereaved family.

Jammu, October 6
The services of three government teachers, who have been suspended for their alleged involvement in two separate cases of rape and sexual harassment, might be terminated.

The three Rehbar-e-Talem (ReT) teachers - Kuldeep Raj Singh, who had allegedly raped a Class X student in Government Middle School, Kollian, Satpal Chouhan and Jatinder Sharma of Government Middle School, Chakroi - have been suspended for the alleged misdemeanour.

Minister for School Education Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, said if the charges were proved against the three teachers, they would be terminated from their services.

He added the government would discharge its duties towards the people but they should also play their role in order to put an end to such shameful acts in future.

Chief Education Officer Natha Ram Digra said: “After receiving the information about the rape case the day before yesterday, I met the victim immediately. She told me that the accused teacher had raped her on the promise of marriage. We, immediately, suspended the accused teacher. The family of the victim has also lodged an FIR against the accused teacher.”

“We also suspended the other two teachers after receiving a complaint of sexual harassment by students and school staff. Both the cases have been brought to the notice of Director, School Education Zahida Khan and higher authorities. We are considering termination of these teachers from the services,” said the CEO.

The Director, School Education, said the department had taken a action against the three teachers on the basis of a report of the enquiry committee of the department.

“They will be awarded punishment as per the law. We have forwarded the case report to the Education Minister for further action,” said the Director.

He added instruction would be issued to the Zonal Education Officer’s and school principals to keep an eye on the suspected teachers in the schools so that no one could dare to attempt such shameful acts.

Jammu, October 6
The Jammu police today claimed to have busted a gang and arrested four persons who were running a fake service selection board to dupe seekers of government jobs.

Those arrested include a home guard jawan, a Power Development Department (PDD) employee, a computer graduate and his helper.

They were allegedly issuing fake appointment, promotion and transfer orders to the aspirants. The accused allegedly charged nearly Rs 1.5 lakh for a fake appointment.

Interestingly, these fraudulent persons befooled the “appointees” for the first three to four months by depositing the salary in their bank accounts, the police said.

It added 15 fake appointment letters, issued on the names of senior bureaucrats of the state, were recovered from the accused. Besides, two computers and two bank accounts of Canara bank and J&K Bank, having a deposit of Rs 2 lakh, have also been seized.

Explaining the modus operandi of the accused, SHO of the Janipur police station Jaipal Sharma said: “The kingpin of this racket, a home guard jawan posted at Kazigund in the Kashmir valley, used to issue the fake appointment letters to the aspirants and also deposited salaries of first few months in their bank accounts. The aspirants were told not to join the duties immediately but to wait for a few months and give money only after getting the salary.”

He added: “The accused used to issue fake appointment letters to job seekers in Railways, Social Welfare Department, Rehbar-e-Taleem, Irrigation and Science and Technology Department.”

Jaipal further said a case under sections 420, 467, 468 and 120-B of the RPC has been registered against the four accused and a probe was on to find out the involvement of other persons in the racket. The police was also trying to get the previous record of these arrested persons.

Those arrested have been identified as Sanjay Kumar, a home-guard jawan, Vijay Kumar, an employee of the PDD, Ravi Abrol, owner of a computer shop situated in Gandhi Nagar, and his helper, Vinay, a resident of Nanak Nagar.

A senior police officer said the arrested home-guard jawan had worked under a senior IAS officer and he came to know about the official language and style of issuing appointment letters from there.

He added the gang had been operating for the past one year. 

Jammu, October 6
A day after the murder of 19-year-old Ali Asgar Jatt, newly elected president of Government Degree College, Rajouri, the members of his family today blocked the Gujjar Mandi Road for about two hours after laying the body on the road demanding immediate arrest of the accused.

Ali Asgar, a BA-III student, was beaten to death last night around 7.15 pm by some unidentified persons, when he was returning to his house in Dhanidhar village on his motorcycle. He died while being taken to hospital, the police said. As reports of his death reached Rajouri, tension gripped the town and the college authorities announced a holiday.

Meanwhile, Rajouri Deputy Commissioner GA Khwaja visited the spot and told the protesters that the accused would be arrested soon and pacified them. After getting the assurance, the protesters removed the body from the road and performed the last rites of the deceased.

The district administration has announced to close all schools, colleges and educational institutes situated in Rajouri town tomorrow.

The Government Degree College would open on Saturday. The police has launched a massive search operation to arrest the accused and five persons - a Patwari Mohammad Afzal, his two sons Naseem Shah and Tufail Shah, Mazil Khan and Sajjad Khan - have already been rounded-up for questioning.

The police termed it an act done by the opposition students’ group and said no one would be spared.

A case under Section 302 of the RPC has been registered against some unidentified persons at Rajouri police station.

Jaan Mohammad, SHO, Rajouri police station, said, “We are putting maximum efforts to arrest the accused and they would be arrested in a short time.”