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Omar cuts short UK trip, visits Dastageer shrine
A day after shrine fire, shutdown in Valley
PDP concerned about ‘hasty’ clean-up operation
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Thousands have darshan at Amarnath cave shrine
Tribune
Impact
J&K police submits report on Bhaderwah triple murder case
Governor calls for fighting crime with help of technology
CRPF jawan among 3 hurt in grenade attack
PDP to begin statewide anti-govt stir from July 4
Firing by Pak troops an act of frustration: Army
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Omar cuts short UK trip, visits Dastageer shrine
Srinagar, June 26 The Chief Minister assessed the quantum of damage, an official said. Talking to mediapersons, Omar assured that the revered shrine would be restored to its original glory with the help of best possible expertise. He appealed to the people to maintain peace, exercise restraint and exhibit the highest degree of tolerance in view of the protests against the fire incident. Omar said the entire state was anguished and in mourning. He urged the people to beware of “divisive forces” whose sole objective was to “disrupt” peace and harmony. “All of us who regard and respect the divine and revered shrine should stand for peace and tolerance,” he added. The Chief Minister, who was accompanied by Minister for Rural Development Ali Mohammad Sagar, Advisers to the Chief Minister Mubarak Gul and Devender Singh Rana, Minister of State
for Home Nasir Aslam Wani, Principal Secretary (Home) B R Sharma, DGP K Rajindra and Vice-Chairman of the Muslim Waqaf Board M Y Qadri interacted with locals and the management of the revered shrine. Meanwhile, in order to restore the Pir Dastageer Sahab shrine, the government has constituted a committee to prepare a reconstruction plan and it would also seek the
help of experts from the J&K Chapter of the Indian National Trust for
Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) in this regard. “A committee of experts will prepare a comprehensive reconstruction plan for the shrine within two weeks. The services of INTACH would also be utilised, as the organisation had already documented and digitalised intricate details of the shrine in 2010,” an official said after a meeting that was chaired by the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Dr Asgar Hassan Samoon, here
yesterday. The meeting also decided that a fire safety audit of all major heritage shrines of Kashmir would be done by a committee of experts very soon. It was told that the Muslim Auqaf Trust would speed up the construction of adjacent mosque, which had also got partially damaged, to facilitate regular prayers at the earliest. |
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A day after shrine fire, shutdown in Valley
Srinagar, June 26 Most of the shops, educational institutions and other business establishments remained closed while public transport remained off the roads in view of the bandh call given by several separatist parties and religious organisations. Thin attendance was recorded at government offices due to non-availability of public transport. Shops at the civil line areas of the city, which usually remain open during shutdown call of separatists, too were closed today while auto-rickshaws were not seen plying on the roads as well. Strict restrictions were imposed in the old city areas after stone-throwing incidents and subsequent firing of teargas shells by the security forces there had left 20 persons, including 10 policemen, injured yesterday. Barbed wires were placed at many old city areas and Maisuma near Lal Chowk with a heavy deployment of security forces while the movement of people and vehicles at these places was restricted. A police spokesman said no reports of any person or policeman getting injured were reported today even as the city continued to remain tense for the second consecutive day. However, stray incidents of stone-throwing were reported from some parts of the city. Reports reaching here said the shutdown call hit normal life in other districts of the Valley as well. Meanwhile, the government foiled the programme of several religious organisations that were planning to stage a demonstration against the fire incident. Karwan-i-Islami patron Maulana G R Hami, who is also the chairman of Mutahida Ulema Ahl-e-Sunnat (MUAS), a conglomerate of several religious organisations, had called for a protest demonstration outside another Pir Dastageer Sahab shrine located at Sarai Bala here. A MUAS spokesman said the members of the conglomerate were placed under house arrest to foil their programme. Hami has called for a shutdown tomorrow as well. Mufti Bashiruddin, who heads the self-styled Supreme Court of Shariah, has called for “Khanyar chalo” on Friday. He has also served an “ultimatum” on the government to make public the probe into the fire incident within two weeks, saying that he did not rule out a “conspiracy” behind it.
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PDP concerned about ‘hasty’ clean-up operation
Srinagar, June 26 In a statement, the PDP spokesman questioned if it was necessary “to remove all evidence” at a time when the government had ordered an inquiry into the cause of the fire incident. “Given the government’s track record on inquiries ordered by it, very few people would expect the truth to come out but destroying all physical evidence before the inquiry could take off has rendered it all the more futile and cosmetic,” he added. The spokesman flayed the government’s “inability” to safeguard the shrines of the Valley while pointing out that J&K Chapter of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) had repeatedly warned the government about serious threats to these wooden assets of great architectural value. — TNS |
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Thousands have darshan at Amarnath cave shrine
Srinagar, June 26 The annual yatra began via both routes yesterday after the Governor and Chairman of the SASB, NN Vohra, participated in the “pratham darshan” and puja to mark the commencement of the annual pilgrimage. As many as 10,307 pilgrims had darshan of the Shivalingam on the first day yesterday, officials said. Today, more than 10,000 pilgrims returned to the base camp at Baltal up to 4 pm, after having darshan at the holy cave. Due to heavy snowfall during the last winter followed by bad weather conditions over the past few months, there has been a heavy accumulation of snow in the cave shrine area and at other places, including Sheshnag on the traditional Pahalgam route. In view of the arrival of unregistered pilgrims, arrangements for on-the-spot registration have been made at both base camps at Baltal and Pahalgam. “This has been done to ensure that no unregistered pilgrim moves on the track. It also helps us provide the requisite facilities available along the routes,” said an official. While 7,155 pilgrims left the Nunwan base camp at Pahalgam yesterday, about 7,000 pilgrims started the yatra this morning. The pilgrims are allowed from 5 am to 10 am, so as to regulate the movement. More than 22,000 pilgrims have been allowed from Chandanwari during the past two days, say reports reaching here. At least 25,000 pilgrims left for the holy cave from Baltal on the first two days. The 13 km from Baltal base camp to the holy cave is covered within six hours and the pilgrims return to the base camp within one day. Officials at Baltal say at least 9,000 pilgrims returned to the base camp after having darshan of the Shivalingam at the cave yesterday. Over 900 unregistered pilgrims also got on-the-spot registration at Baltal during the past two days. |
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Tribune
Impact
Rajouri, June 26 The action was taken after a report on the plight of the bonded labourers was published in The Tribune on June 25 titled “Families forced into bonded labour for 20 years”. All 26 bonded labourers of four families were released and sent to Chhattisgarh on buses, sources said. It was a moment of joy for all those who lived for so many years at the brick-kiln. Ganesh Ram (43), who hails from Kori village in Chhattisgarh, has five children. He was working in the same brick-kiln for nine years. Talking to The Tribune over phone, he said, “We are very happy to leave this place. Now we are free. District Development Commissioner (DDC) Sawgat Biswas, while taking serious note of the report published in this newspaper, got all 26 bonded labourers rescued . Biswas said, “We have released all bonded labourers and made arrangements for shifting them to Chhattisgarh and also issued them bonded labour certificates.” Among others who were forced into bonded labour were Naveen Kumar (47), father of five children, Mohboob Khan (60), a resident of Salalpur in Uttar Pradesh and father of seven children. Bahadur Singh, who has been working for the past 20 years in the same brick-kiln, said they were not allowed to go home for many years. The labourers had alleged that a middleman, Raju Diwakar, had purchased them from a Srinagar-based brick-kiln owner and further sold them for Rs 10.5 lakh to the local brick-kiln owner. “They paid us Rs 120 instead of Rs 380 (the market price) for making 1,000 bricks,” alleged Ganesh Ram. |
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J&K police submits report on Bhaderwah triple murder case
Srinagar, June 26 The name of former Director General of J&K Police Kuldeep Khoda had cropped up in the case earlier. Khoda’s name has been recommended by a panel for Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC). On May 29, J&K High Court had dismissed a petition against Khoda for his alleged role in the triple murder case. While submitting the report, the prosecution requested the SHRC ‘to treat the report as privileged’. The report was submitted in a sealed envelope to the division bench of the SHRC. The prosecution, however, pleaded before the SHRC that the case was not admissible. On May 24, the SHRC had directed the state government to make available the Crime Branch report, including the final investigation report. In 1996, three persons Fazal Mohammad Dar, his son Fareed Ahmad Dar and their neighbour Mohammad Hussain Dar were allegedly abducted and killed in cold blood and their bodies thrown in Chenab river at Bhaderwah. A Crime Branch investigation conducted by Superintendent of Police (Crime), Bachan Singh Choudhary, had blamed one Ashraf for executing the civilians. The inquiry had also indicted the then DIG Doda-Udhampur range, Kuldeep Khoda, for his role in the killings. After hearing the prosecution, the SHRC deferred the matter till July 3. The Commission will also decide the same day whether the sealed Crime Branch report is a ‘confidential document’ or it may ask for making the document public. |
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Governor calls for fighting crime with help of technology
Srinagar, June 26 “Crime is not what it used to be half a century ago when footprints were traced to apprehend the criminals. Today, crime does not have geographical boundaries. Mafia and terrorist groups are committing remotely controlled crime and perpetrating violence by using state-of-the-art weapons and equipment,” Vohra said while inaugurating the three-day All India Forensic Science Conference in Srinagar. “The investigating agencies and forensic science experts have to be several steps ahead of the criminals to effectively deal with them. This calls for much closer coordination among the investigation agencies, real-time exchange of data and investigation findings and use of advanced gadgetry, hi-tech labs and techniques for cracking difficult criminal cases,” the Governor said. He added that there was an urgent need for building capacities and upgrading forensic science laboratories in the state. “The facility is required to be established at the district level for timely investigation of cases,” he said. The Minister of State for Home, Nasir Aslam Wani, stressed on the need for setting up an academy of forensic sciences in J&K. “We are in the process of putting in place a strong human resource base for forensic science experts to undertake DNA profiling, voice identification and effectively dealing with cyber crime,” Wani said. The Principal Secretary, Home, BR Sharma, also spoke on the occasion. |
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CRPF jawan among 3 hurt in grenade attack
Srinagar, June 26 “The grenade splinters hit an elderly couple who was passing by and a CRPF jawan patrolling the area,” a police officer said. The injured were identified as Bashir Ahmed Budoo, 53, his wife Sanjeeda,50, residents of Nageen Bagh in Sopore, and CRPF jawan Keshaw Sarkar of 177 Battalion. The three were shifted to the Sub-District Hospital in Sopore and their condition was stated to be stable. The police has registered a case and started an investigation in the case. Soon after the grenade attack, the police and CRPF launched a manhunt to nab the culprits. The militant managed to flee after tossing the grenade, police said. No militant outfit claimed responsibility for the attack till the filing of the report. This is the second grenade attack in Sopore town in the past 10 days. On June 17, five CRPF personnel were injured when suspected militants lobbed a grenade at a picket of 179 Battalion of the CRPF near the bus stand. |
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PDP to begin statewide anti-govt stir from July 4
Jammu, June 26 Mufti said protests will be held across the state from next month at all the tehsil headquarters against the Omar-led government as it has failed to carry forward the agenda of peace and development. Addressing a daylong convention of senior party leaders and workers of Jammu province, the PDP patron regretted that all democratic institutions, be it Urban Local Bodies, Panchayats or Assembly, have been undermined by the present government. Ridiculing the government’s claims of giving powers to the panchayats, Mufti said that nothing has been done in this regard except promises. "More than one year has passed after completion of the panchayat elections but no action has been taken to delegate powers to the panchayats," he said. He alleged that a non-serious attitude of the government can be gauged from the fact that after more than one year, the elections for the block development councils and district development councils are yet to be held. He observed that during the PDP-led coalition government, more than one lakh youths were recruited and only deserving youth were given government jobs. Pointing towards a serious power crisis in the Jammu region, Mufti reminded that during the PDP regime neither Baglihar nor Dul Hasti projects were commissioned but the then government had provided round-the-clock power to people here. Reiterating the PDP’s demand to take back hydro-electric projects from NHPC, he emphasised on giving maximum employment to the locals in hydro-electric projects to be constructed in the Chenab Valley. He asked former Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Hussain Beigh to prepare a charter of demands especially for the residents of the Chenab Valley. If required, the PDP would bring plights of the people to the notice of the Prime Minister and Union Power Minister, he said. Speaking on the occasion, former Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Hussain Beigh said the National Conference leadership has always propagated divisive policy for petty political gains. He regretted that instead of bridging the gap between different regions, NC leadership always tried to widen the
gap. |
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Firing by Pak troops an act of frustration: Army
Jammu, June 21 “There was no provocation from our side in KG sector. We want peaceful atmosphere on the border but the Pakistani Army after having failed in pushing ultras to the Indian side, has been adopting all possible ploys to disturb the peace,” an Army official said. Army sources said the latest round of Defence Secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan on Sir Creek ended without much headway and the recent Pak-US negotiations also failed. “With militancy on a decline in Jammu and Kashmir, a frustrated Pak Army wants to keep the pot boiling and hence they have been resorting to such misadventures,” the sources said. “Militarily, we see no reason behind recent misadventures in the KG sector. Therefore, we can make out that the Pak Army is now frustrated to the core and can go to any level, the sources added. It may be recalled that before the Pak Army’s unprovoked fire on June 13, there had been three to four infiltration bids by the armed militants from Pakistan side in KG sector. There was also sniping incident at two BSF jawans in KG sector of Poonch earlier while five other soldiers were also injured. There have been 19 ceasefire violations and nine infiltration bids along the 224.5 km long LoC in Jammu region so far this year. |
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