Jammu, May 30
The BJP faced another embarrassment in the cross-voting controversy today when the suspended Leader of the BJP Legislature Party, Chaman Lal Gupta, exercising his powers under the Constitution of the state, suspended four ‘clean’ party MLAs and served a notice of disqualification on them. The four MLAs to whom the notice was served had been given clean chit by the party high command in the cross-voting controversy.

In the April 13 Legislative Council elections, seven of the 11 BJP MLAs had indulged in cross-voting in favour of the candidates of the National Conference and the Congress. Taking a serious note of the development, the BJP high command had suspended seven of the 11 MLAs on April 20 and served a show cause notice on them.

The suspended MLAs, including Legislature Party leader Chaman Lal Gupta, had repeatedly questioned the parameters adopted by the party high command to single out them for cross-voting. The high command had removed Gupta from the post of the Legislature Party leader and appointed Jugal Kishore Sharma in his place despite the fact that six suspended MLAs had written to the Speaker stating that Gupta was their leader.

The six suspended MLAs had written a letter to Gupta, asking him to take action against the four ‘loyal’ legislators for forming a dissident group in the Assembly and electing Jugal Kishore as their leader.

Quoting the clause 2 of the 7th Schedule of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, the six suspended MLAs stated, “As and when a member of the Legislature Party gives up the membership of the political party of which he was made a member, he becomes subject to disqualification on the ground of defection. For example, a member accompanied by some other members goes to the Speaker and claims himself to be the leader of the group, it’s sufficient to draw an inference that he has given up the membership of the party”. Further quoting the clause 6 of the 7th Schedule, they pointed out, “Whenever a question arises as to disqualification on the ground of defection, it has to be referred to the Leader of the Legislature Party to which the delinquent member belongs”.

Acting on the letter of the six suspended legislators, Gupta suspended four party MLAs for forming a dissident group in the Assembly. Gupta, exercising powers as the BJP Legislature Party leader, had served a show cause notice on the four MLAs and asked them to clear their position within two days. Today’s move of the suspended MLAs is seen as a counter offensive as the leader of the ‘loyal’ MLAs, Jugal Kishore Sharma, had already served a notice on them and today was the last day of giving reply.

Jammu, May 30
“Abba! please save me from police….I am being unnecessarily harassed and humiliated (meri izzat uchaali ja rahi hai). Tell them that your daughter is here with your permission….do tell them that I am not characterless lest they will take me into custody”.

The last talk with her daughter in distress, Rahida Banoo (20), over telephone keeps buzzing in the head of Abdul Rafeeq of Balessa village in Doda district. He lost her daughter in a clear case of moral policing in broad daylight at Pul Doda yesterday.

Going by the eyewitness account, after getting an anonymous call, four policemen stepped into a tea stall at Pul Doda on the bank of the Chenab, where Rahida was sitting with her friend Najab Din. The policemen first grilled them for some time, allegedly to extract some money. Subsequently, they thrashed Najab publicly and requisitioned a Tata Sumo and started forcing them into it, eyewitnesses told The Tribune over the phone today.

To escape ‘humiliation’, a bitterly crying Rahida secured her release from the grip of a policeman and jumped into the gushing Chenab. Her body has not been recovered so far. Besides heart-wrenching memories for many, she left behind a black dupatta on the bank of the river.

In spite of this harrowing incident, the boy, a resident of Ukhral village in Ramban district, was taken to police station. He, however, was released after some hours. He could not be contacted.

Rahida was pursuing B.Ed from Kishtwar. She had gone to Pul Doda to give the BEd admission form of a college to her friend, Najab Din. They were also classmates in the undergraduate course.

An eyewitness said Rahida pleaded with the police and even touched their feet to let her go home. She even called up her father and made police personnel talk with him, but they were insistent on taking the duo to police station.

Sobbing, Rafeeq narrated the incident. “I got a call from my daughter around 3:30 pm. I told the chowki officer on line that she had come there to give some documents to her classmate, but he (the police officer) did not listen to him. The officer asked me to visit the SHO in police station to take my daughter’s custody”.

“We were on our way to Pul Doda when we got a call that our daughter was no more,” he said, adding that, “My daughter was mentally tortured and pressured to jump into the river”. “Those who are responsible for the death of my daughter should be given exemplary punishment so that children of others do not meet the same fate,” he said.

Former MLC Mohammad Iqbal Bhat, at the home of the bereaved family, said, “This is highhandedness on the part of the police. She was not found indulging in any indecent activity. She was just sitting with her friend at a tea shop”.

Jammu, May 30
Girls outshone boys in the Class X examinations in the Jammu province, the results of which were declared by the J&K State Board of School Education (BoSE) here today. With 98.2 per cent marks (491/500), Tanu Devi, a student of RMC Higher Secondary School, Kathua, secured the top position, while the second position was shared by Megha Sethi, a student of Spring Dales English School, Kathua, and Swadha Kailoo of Brahama Rishi Bawra SVP Higher Secondary School, Udhampur, with 97 per cent marks (485/500). The top 20 positions on the merit list were secured by 84 students, including 53 girls.

The results, which were for the first time declared on the grading pattern, witnessed a decline of above six per cent as compared to the last year’s results. This year, the pass percentage is 50.01 per cent as compared to 56.52 per cent last year. The pass percentage of boys and girls were 49.22 and 50.98 per cent, respectively.

Of 47,061 students, who appeared in the exams, 20,275 were declared pass, while 3,259 students got reappear and 23,350 failed. Interestingly, all students, whose names figured on the merit list, were from private schools, and none was from government schools.

However, Prof Javed Iqbal Khatib, Joint Secretary (Secrecy), BoSE, said the pass percentage declined this year due to a strict drive against copying and use of unfair means during exams.

Srinagar, May 30
Governor NN Vohra has reiterated that the youth of the state have a very high potential and they could prove themselves if provided proper opportunities. He called upon the youth to work hard and compete in various national-level civil, police, forests, administrative and near 24 other services.

The Governor was interacting with the successful candidates of the All India Civil Services Examination and the Indian Forest Service from the state at Raj Bhawan here last evening.

The First Lady, Usha Vohra, was also present on the occasion. In all 12 youths from Jammu and Kashmir have been selected to the All India civil services this year, including three for the Indian Forest Service. The successful candidates are Abid Hussain Sadiq, Dr Syed Abid Rasheed Shah, Gulzar Ahmed Wani, Sarvjeet Soodan, Vimarsh, Mohammad Aijaz, Bhupinder Kumar, Ovessa Iqbal, Sameer Sharma, Tsewang Gyalson, Sandeep Kumar and Krishan Kumar.

The Governor and the First Lady felicitated the competitors and hoped that more students from the state would get inspiration from them and compete successfully for the All India civil services in the coming years.

The Governor had hosted a reception at Raj Bhawan to congratulate these talented youths of the state. The Governor and the First Lady presented gifts to them and wished them a bright career ahead.

Jammu, May 30
The transfer of 7.9 kanals to the Bhagat Chajju Ram Charitable Trust at Gadigarh in Miran Sahib for setting up an educational institution has earned the ire of NGOs and Pakistan refugees of 1947. The refugees staged a protest on Friday last after they learnt about the controversial transfer of land that had been done in 2007, but came to light on May 27. Moreover, the state government had promised to set up a revenue complex on the land.

The trust is headed by a former Congress Minister, Suman Lata Bhagat. The Jammu Development Authority (JDA) had transferred the land to the trust in 2007 at subsidised rates of Rs 39.5 lakh, while the market rate was stated to be nearly Rs 1 crore.

The land was transferred with a precondition that it would be used for setting up an educational institution for the downtrodden and disadvantaged children within four years from the date of the deed. However, the people came to know that the land now belonged to the trust only when it started the construction work a few days ago.

The trust got the land even as a number of state awardees, social and philanthropic organisations had been working from rented accommodations, waiting for the allotment of land.

“Our files have been gathering dust in government offices for years,” said an NGO functionary. This piece of prime land is located along the road that connects Gadigarh with the Industrial area in Ashok Nagar. It has hundreds of fully grown eucalyptus trees planted by the Department of Social Forestry. “The land has been given to the trust on lease for Rs 39.5 lakh, which the trust has already paid,” said the vice-chairman of the JDA, Vinod Sharma.

“If the trust does not comply with the conditions, including setting up of an educational institution for poor students, the land will be resumed,” he said. He added that the land belonged to the state earlier, but was transferred to the JDA in 2004.

“The area is primarily inhabited by refugees of 1947. The same piece of land was used as a pasture, but later it was left for the use of the community,” Narinder Pal, a local resident said. He added that, “The land was earmarked for setting up a revenue complex for the people of Digiana”.

Another resident, a retired zonal education officer, Kem Raj Khajuria, said, “Our forefathers deliberately left the land for the construction of government offices and with the passage of time a panchayat ghar, a tube well, health centre, primary school and a grid station came up on it. We demand that the land should be developed by the government for community use”.

Chairperson of the trust Suman Lata Bhagat could not be reached for comments despite repeated attempts. However, her son, Vikas Bhagat, who is also a member of the trust, declined to give the profile, audit report and annual report of the trust.

Jammu, May 30
Activists of the National Secular Forum (NSF) today ghaeroed and locked the office of Director, Department of Human Genetics, University of Jammu, over the appointment of an “ineligible” candidate on contractual basis in the department.

A number of NSF activists led by its state president Vikas Sharma raised slogans against Vice-Chancellor Varun Sahni and Director, Department of Human Genetics, NK Tripathi for giving “undue favour” to an “ineligible” candidate.

They locked the main gate of the office of Director, Department of Human Genetics for a few minutes to express their resentment. “It was stated that the candidates, who had a degree in human genetics or zoology, were eligible for the post. A total of 15 candidates comprising 14 from the Jammu region and one from Kashmir, had applied for the post, but to our utter surprise the lone candidate from the Kashmir region, who had done M.Sc in fisheries, was appointed in violation of the eligibility criteria,” alleged Sharma.

He asked the authorities concerned to explain how was an “ineligible” candidate appointed.

Jammu, May 30
The BSF troops today shot dead a Pakistan intruder, believed to be a guide of suspected ultras along the border in Samba district, resulting into an unprovoked firing by the Pakistan Rangers.

“During wee hours today our troopers shot dead a Pakistan intruder and foiled his bid to enter the Indian territory near a forward post in Samba district,” a senior Boarder Security Force officer told The Tribune.

After he refused to stop despite verbal warnings and preventive fire, the troops shot him. But the Pakistan Rangers, who might have misconstrued it, also opened a brief fire, he added.

At the flag meeting, the Pakistan Rangers plainly refused to own the intruder, said the officer.

The intruder’s body was handed over to the police, which buried it in a graveyard in Samba, said the sources.

The BSF has already intensified its vigil along the 198-km international border, mostly a plain area.