|
|
|
|
|
Police-militant nexus
Unable to push militants into J-K, Pak resorting to truce violations
The opening of the tunnel in the Samba sector. |
|
|
BJP wants defence panel to look into tunnel issue
Court grants bail to 3 policemen
Engineer washed away in flash flood
Governor, CM greet Ansari
CM calls for extending welfare schemes to deserving
Ganderbal killing Chief of the Jamaat-e-Islami Sheikh Mohammad Hassan addresses a press conference in Srinagar on Tuesday. Photo: Amin War
Sikhs continue protests over US gurdwara shootout
Justice Kuchay’s death mourned
Extension of 73rd Amendment to J&K
Air Marshal Arup Raha visits Jammu Air Force station
Teachers’ training course losing patronage in the state
Chinar Corps GOC, DGP co-chair core group meet
|
|
Police-militant nexus
Srinagar, August 7 That the photographs and residential details of top policemen had been handed over to militants was revealed by the policemen who were arrested in June on charges of working with Hizbul Mujahideen militants. The photographs and residential addresses of police officers mostly posted in south Kashmir were handed over to militants by these policemen . “The arrested policemen had provided pictures of senior police officers and their residential houses. They had provided this information in lieu of huge money,” a police source privy to the investigations said. “It is an alarming development as the name of those policemen have also been handed over to militants, who live in far-flung areas of south Kashmir,” he added. An alleged nexus between a few J&K policemen from the intelligence wing and militants was unearthed on June 17 by the J&K Police during routine investigation of the case, in which a former militant was attacked in the Hazratbal locality of Srinagar. The nexus is turning out to be a major embarrassment for the police’s top brass in the state with investigations revealing that the ‘rogue cops’ were close to some top police officers. The police had nabbed four cops, who were charged with “planning to orchestrate terror strikes to create a chaos in the state.” The police said that the arrested cops were also taking money from Hizbul Mujahideen militants for carrying weapons and providing sensitive information about the movement of police officers. The four policemen, Mukhtar Ahmad Sheikh, Mohammad Abbas, Ilyas Khan and Riyaz Ahmad Beigh, were subsequently booked under Section 10 (being member of an unlawful organisation), Section 13 (any form of assistance in unlawful activity), Section 18 (conspiracy to commit terrorist act) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and 3 PEPO (Police Enhanced Penalty Ordinance). Police left red-faced The Case *
On June 17, the lid on the nexus was taken off when a constable was picked up after it was found that he was in touch with a militant commander in the Tral area of south Kashmir who had planned an attack on a former militant in the Saderbal Hazratbal area of the city on June 6. During questioning, the nexus between the militants and cops surfaced. |
||
|
Unable to push militants into J-K, Pak resorting to truce violations
Jammu, August 7 “The detection of a transborder tunnel in Chalyari in the Samba sector and ceasefire violations in the Arnia, Hiranagar sectors along the international border and the Poonch sector along the LoC amply show how desperate Pakistan is to push ultras into the state and disrupt Independence Day celebrations,” said an Army source. Not only do they want to disturb Independence Day celebrations but they are also eager to re-fuel insurgency in the state where stability has been restored due to concerted counter-insurgency operations and 24x7 vigil along the borders, added the source. “A few days ago senior officials of Pakistan Rangers along with their spouses were enjoying Indian hospitality at New Delhi and see what they were up to - a 500-metre tunnel running all the way from Shakkergarh tehsil into Chalyari along the international border. And now there has been a spurt in truce violations,” the source said. Unable to push militants to this side, Pakistan is now resorting to all possible ploys, including ceasefire violations and of course the tunnel, said the source. He put the number of terrorists in various launch pads on the other side of the LoC south of the Pir Panjal range at 325. So far this year, Pakistan has violated the ceasefire 21 times but we are alert to the situation, he said. The Jammu region has not seen any major terror activity. About the ceasefire violation in the Arnia sector yesterday, the IGP, Jammu zone, Dilbag Singh, said: “It was reported that a group of five armed persons were sighted on the other side of the border.” He, however, said enough measures had been taken to ensure peaceful Independence Day celebrations. The IGP also admitted that the tunnel detected at Chalyari was a serious security concern. Against the backdrop of this development, security along the border has been beefed up and additional police deployment has already been made.
|
||
|
BJP wants defence panel to look into tunnel issue
Jammu, August 7 “After using sea route to push armed terrorists into India, Pakistan has now changed its proxy war strategy and is making successful attempts to sneak through underground channels. The detection of the underground tunnel is an open aggression on India’s sovereignty,” BJP national executive member and former state president Nirmal Singh along with Suchetgarh MLA Sham Choudhary told reporters here. Taking a dig at the Congress-led UPA government and the NC-led state government for showing “non-seriousness on a sensitive issue”, the BJP leader said neither the state nor the Central government nor any agency has bothered to find out the tunnel’s exit and how far the terrorists had succeeded in using this channel to infiltrate to this side of the border. — TNS
|
||
|
Court grants bail to 3 policemen
Srinagar, August 7 The three policemen, Mukhtar Ahmad, Riyaz Ahmad and Ilyas Ahmad, had moved their bail applications before the second Additional Sessions Judge, Srinagar, who after hearing the arguments of their counsel on Saturday had deferred the matter for final orders. “While ordering the release of the policemen on bail, the court however put riders on their release asking them not to leave territorial jurisdiction of Kashmir,” a counsel who represented the policemen in their bail applications told The Tribune. Besides, the counsel added, the court also granted bail to a civilian, Bilal Ahmad Rather, who was also arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in connection with the case. The court is yet to decide the bail application of the fourth accused policeman, Muhammad Abbas. The plan of the police to plant policemen into militant ranks went awry when the policemen tasked for “spying” developed a “soft corner” for militants and reportedly joined them in staging some attacks. In the initial remand application before the CJM, Srinagar, the SIT, which is investigating the matter, had submitted that the arrested policemen “had struck a deal with terrorist groups for providing them sensitive information and carrying their weapons from one place to another in exchange for money.” It added that on June 15 Muhammad Abbas was summoned for questioning by the police. The police recovered from him a document written in Urdu containing information on how to prepare and use IEDs. “It indicated that the person was in league with militants and was planning to explode IEDs to terrorise people,” the remand application stated.
|
||
|
Engineer washed away in flash flood
Batote, August 7 While the missing engineer is 30-year old Rahul Singh of Uttar Pradesh, the injured driver has been identified as Ram Gopal Pandey of Madhya Pradesh.. Sources said when the tipper of JP Associates Limited, the company constructing the Baghlihar Hydel Project, was passing over a culvert of Gajpat nallah, a sudden flash flood washed it away with the duo. While the driver fell on the
banks of the Chenab, the engineer could not escape the flood’s fury. A search is on to trace the missing engineer. |
||
|
Governor, CM greet Ansari
Srinagar, August 7 Omar highlighted Ansari’s role in various capacities as the Vice-President of India and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. He conveyed his best wishes to Ansari.
|
||
|
CM calls for extending welfare schemes to deserving
Srinagar, August 7 Omar issued the directions while chairing the 6th meeting of the Governing Council of the SRC here. “The State Rehabilitation Council should chalk out a strategy to provide skill upgradation training to the militancy-affected destitute, orphans and widows to open up vistas of job opportunities for them. Infact, the SRC and EDI should jointly look into the area and come up with a befitting programme for these categories,” Omar said at the meeting. Endorsing the need for supporting widows of those killed in militancy-related incidents to get benefit of pension, he stressed that the recommendation made by the SRC should be concretised. He asked for chipping in of all the authorities concerned in formulating the operational module to help cover all uncovered widows under the SRC pension scheme. The action report on decisions taken during the last Governing Council meeting was discussed in the meeting. The meeting also discussed the extension of benefits of the Rehabilitation Council schemes to widows of militants and wives and children of missing persons. While presenting an overview of achievements of the SRC, Commissioner Secretary, Social Welfare, Jeet Lal in his presentation said pension worth Rs 3.35 crore had been provided to 3,840 widows in 2010-11. He said old-age pension of Rs 2 crore was given to 2,292 elderly persons during the same year.
|
||
|
Ganderbal killing
Srinagar, August 7 Addressing a press conference here, Jamaat chief Sheikh Mohammad Hassan held a local sarpanch and his supporters responsible for the incident. Claiming that the attack was “unilateral”, he said the sarpanch had given a sectarian colour to the incident to save himself. He was referring to
the killing of a youth, Shabir Ahmad Bhat, at a mosque in Sendbal village of Ganderbal. Expressing concern and grief over the killing, Geelani blamed the NC, claiming that the ruling party had always “targeted religion-oriented people in Kashmir”. “This incident is another form of state terrorism because agents of the state government are involved in it,” Geelani added. He appealed to the people to maintain sectarian harmony at any cost. Chairman of the moderate Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umar Farooq termed the incident as unfortunate and gruesome, saying there is no place for such incidents in Islam and humanity. Calling for introspection, he said: “Let us look inwards to see if our actions are not hurting our greater unity.” Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik visited Ganderbal and expressed concern over the killing. “This is a serious incident and a shame for the whole nation. The nation should mourn this killing as it is the killing of humanity and against the teachings of Islam,” Malik said. Killing sectarian: Govt
|
||
|
Sikhs continue protests over US gurdwara shootout
Jammu, August 7
Carrying banners and placards, a large number of members of the Sikh community under the banner of the All J&K Sikh Organisation assembled outside Exhibition Ground here and raised slogans against the US government for its failure to protect minorities living there. “The shooting incident was unfortunate and highly condemnable. The shootout exposed the US government’s tall claims about security to the minorities living there. The new trend of gun culture should be condemned and exemplary action be taken against culprits,” Mohinder Singh, coordinator of the organisation, told mediapersons here. The Sikh leader said the organisation demanded strong action against those who planned and executed the “inhumane” and “gruesome” crime against Sikh devotees offering prayers at a gurdwara in Wisconsin, USA. He called upon the US government to conduct a detailed investigation and bring all culprits to justice. “The Sikh community has immensely contributed to the socio-economic development of America and is still making valuable contribution in its development and progress,” he said and appealed to the Central government to vigorously take up the issue with the USA to restore confidence among the Sikhs living there. Similar protests were also reported in Rajouri and Poonch districts, where protesters demanded stern action against those responsible for the killing of Sikh devotees.
|
||
|
Justice Kuchay’s death mourned
Jammu, August 7 |
||
|
Extension of 73rd Amendment to J&K
Srinagar, August 7 Addressing a press conference here, Youth Congress secretary Chetan Pratap Singh, who is also in charge of the J&K affairs, gave a seven-day ultimatum to the state over the extension of the 73rd Amendment. “If the government fails to do so in a week, we will start an agitation and come on the streets. It is a pity that the Act has been reduced to a sham in J&K,” Singh said. He said the Youth Congress leaders would submit memorandums at all offices of the deputy commissioners across the districts on August 9 to put pressure on the state government. Singh asserted that they had the “backing of the Central leadership” and the state government’s refusal to extend the amendment would result in dire consequences. When asked why Youth Congress leaders were mulling an agitation when they were the coalition partners of the ruling National Conference, he said the coalition government had its “compulsions”. However, Singh refused to comment further over the matter. Incidentally, some panchayat members’ bodies have already threatened an agitation over the government’s refusal to implement the 73rd Amendment and also over the government’s alleged failure to empower them. However, Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Ali Mohammad Sagar has recently rejected the demand, saying that the government was not bound to extend the 73rd Amendment. Sagar had also said the state government’s own amendment Bill (to strengthen panchayats) had already been tabled in the state Assembly. |
||
|
Air Marshal Arup Raha visits Jammu Air Force station
Jammu, August 7
The Air Marshal was accompanied by his wife, Lily Raha, who is the president of Air Force Wives Welfare Association (Regional) of the WAC. The AOC-in-C arrived in a special IAF aircraft this morning and was received by Air Commodore Nitin Sathe, Air Officer Commanding, Jammu Air Force Station, along with other senior officers. Raha interacted with the station officers and visited various units and sections of the Air Force Station. The AOC-in-C expressed satisfaction with the operational, maintenance and administrative aspects of the station’s functioning. He appreciated the professionalism of the personnel and urged them to constantly strive to achieve higher standards in all spheres of activities related to the service of the nation. The AOC-in-C inaugurated the "state of the art" signal section. Lily Raha, on the other hand, visited all the projects and institutions of the Air Force Wives Welfare Association (Regional), and expressed great satisfaction at the way all the ventures were being operated and maintained. She complimented the management of the Air Force School for their efforts to turn it into an instutuion which was adjudged the second best in the Western Air Command. Air Marshal Arup Raha graduated from the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla, Pune, with distinction, securing the President’s Gold Medal in 1973. He was commissioned in the flying branch in December, 1974. Raha has nearly 3400 hours of flying to his credit, mainly on fighter aircrafts.
|
||
|
Teachers’ training course losing patronage in the state
Jammu, August 7 According to sources, JKBOSE’s decision to stick with its policy to continue the admission process of the 2012-14 ETT academic session without deciding the fate of the previous batches, 2008-10, 2009-11 and 2011-13, has put a bad impression on students who have come from other states to pursue the course. The sources added that due to the prevailing scenario, the number of applications received for the course in the 2012-14 session was meagre. Sources said many students from Rajasthan and Haryana, who had taken admission in various institutions in the state, were now moving to Gwalior and Madhya Pradesh to pursue the course. “The prevailing chaos courtesy the JKBOSE has forced us to look for other options,” said Geetika, one of the ETT aspirants from Hisar. “Despite the ETT course fee being the cheapest in J&K, we have decided to move to other states to complete the course,” she added. “No doubt, the course fee in Gwalior institutes is much more than the fee here but the coordination between the institutes and the education board is better there unlike the J&K institutes, where the management and the JKBOSE keep passing the buck. Most importantly, the examinations are held as per the schedule,” said another ETT aspirant Ramesh from Jaipur. “We are ready to take admissions in any state other than Jammu and Kashmir because we have already suffered heavily in the hands of the JKBOSE,” Ramesh added. The president of the Jammu Private Schools and the ETT Institutes Association, Deep Singh, said, “The state education board has failed to run the ETT course smoothly. The state government must constitute a high-level committee to find out the loopholes in the JKBOSE system,” he opined. Meanwhile, a senior official of the JKBOSE said, “It is really sad that the students are at the receiving end due to the prevailing circumstances. We are trying our best to sort out their issues.”
|
||
|
Chinar Corps GOC, DGP co-chair core group meet
Srinagar, August 7 This was the first
core group meeting after Lt Gen Om Prakash and Ashok Prasad took over their charges. Senior officers of the Army, police, CRPF, BSF, Intelligence Agencies and the civil administration attended the meeting. Lt Gen Prakash complimented the officers for the high level of synergy that exists between all stakeholders in addressing the security concerns of the Valley and urged that the bonhomie at the operational level be further enhanced at the functional level. DGP Prasad echoed similar sentiments and elaborated on key security issues. The meeting deliberated on the initiatives being taken by the security forces to maintain peace and harmony in the Valley and carried out a holistic introspection of the way ahead. The meeting also discussed various security issues and took an overall view of the prevailing external and internal environment.
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Jammu region for the past two years, the discovery of a transborder tunnel and sudden spurt in truce violations by Pakistan is being seen as sheer desperation on the part of a “hostile and unreliable” neighbour to push terrorists to the border state.
Srinagar, August 7
A day after a youth was killed in a clash at a mosque in Ganderbal district, politico-religious organisation Jamaat-e-Islami today claimed that the killing was “not sectarian” while chairman of the hardline Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Geelani blamed the ruling National Conference for the incident.
The Youth Congress today threatened to launch a state-wide agitation if the J&K Government failed to implement the 73rd Amendment to the Panchayati Raj Act.
Addressing a press conference here, Youth Congress secretary Chetan Pratap Singh, who is also in charge of the J&K affairs, gave a seven-day ultimatum to the state over the extension of the 73rd Amendment.
