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Curfew reimposed in parts of Srinagar after fresh clashes
Arrangements in place for Council elections today
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Panches wary of promises
Valley ready for polling amid sub-zero temperatures
BJP optimistic about winning Legislative Council elections
Panthers Party warns govt against rigging
Adequate stock of essential items in
Ladakh: Minister
Search on for missing Kashmiri student
IAF to begin flight service to Kargil from Dec 5
Leh sees rise in HIV patients
Jawan, cop killed in road mishap
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Curfew reimposed in parts of Srinagar after fresh clashes
Srinagar, December 2 The curfew was reimposed in the jurisdiction of Zadibal and Nowhatta police station and in the area falling under Urdu Bazaar police post in the old city early today. “In view of the law and order situation and to avoid breach of peace and tranquillity besides damage to life and property, restrictions have been imposed under Section 144 of the CrPC on the movement of public and transport in the jurisdiction of police station Zadibal and
Nowhatta,” an official spokesman said. A police spokesman said the situation today remained peaceful in the city, including in the areas where the curfew was
reimposed. “No untoward incident was reported from any place,” the spokesman said. The police spokesman said the curfew would remain imposed at these locations tomorrow. The curfew was imposed on Wednesday evening in the city's nine out of 26 police stations after the government feared that the minor clashes between two groups could spiral into larger violence. The curfew was lifted on Saturday. However, as soon as the curfew was lifted, fresh clashes between the two groups again erupted at Sazgaripora in the jurisdiction of Zadibal area following which curfew was again imposed today. Situation in Srinagar’s old city had grown tense on Wednesday when members of two Muslim sects had clashed with each other. The curfew continued on Thursday and Friday with thousands of residents remaining inside their houses as hundreds of police personnel patrolled the streets. Curfew was in place for three days in areas falling in the jurisdiction of
Nowhatta, M R Gunj, Safakadal, Khanyar, Rainawari, Nigeen, Lal Bazar, Zadibal and Parimpora police stations. Most of the areas where the curfew was imposed are in the Srinagar’s volatile old city. |
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Arrangements in place for Council elections today
Jammu, December 2 The polling staff along with the electronic voting machines (EVMs) and election material have already reached 149 polling stations set up across the state. The staff and EVMs were airlifted to snowbound and remote areas of Kishtwar, Doda and Udhampur districts. There are 29,402 panches, including 9,424 women, and 4,098 sarpanches in the state. Out of the total panchayat members, around 15,600 sarpanches and panches in Jammu division and around 17,900 in Kashmir would decide the fate of 37 candidates, including (21 candidates in Jammu and 16 in Kashmir) for four seats of the Legislative Council. Harcharan Singh, Joint Chief Electoral Officer, J&K, said six officials had been deputed at each polling station for “smooth and transparent” conduct of elections. “Apart from this, nearly 10 per cent of the reserved strength of officials has also been made at every polling station so that voting is conducted without any hassle.” He said the polling staff and EVMs being used for polls had been airlifted to snowbound areas in advance. “All the arrangements have been put in place for tomorrow’s elections, which will be held between 9 am and 5 pm. The polling staff along with stationery items and voting machines have already reached polling stations,” Singh said, adding that the counting of votes would take place in Jammu and Srinagar on December 6. About Rs 1 crore would be spent on conducting the Legislative Council elections, which were last conducted in 1974, official sources said. Each block will have two EVMs as every sarpanch and panch will be entitled to cast two votes, one each in the two constituencies of his or her division. A senior police official said security had been beefed up at all block headquarters where the polling booths had been set up. “Special security arrangements have been made in remote and far-off areas of Jammu as well as Kashmir divisions in the wake of militant threats to panchayat members,” the official said. Poll show
Elaborate security As many as 27 companies of the CRPF, including 20 in Kashmir and seven in Jammu, have been deployed to ensure foolproof security at polling stations. For 66 blocks of the Jammu region comprising 10 districts, 17 companies of the J&K Armed Police and Indian Reserve Police have been deployed — A senior police officer |
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Jammu: Even as all political parties have been upbeat about the Legislative Council elections, the electorate (sarpanches and panches) do not seem to be much enthusiastic about the poll. They are wary of the promises made
by leaders of various political parties on empowerment of panchayats.
“These elections have nothing to do with our demand for empowerment of panchayats.I have still not decided whether I’ll vote or not because all political parties have been trying to score brownie points in the name of strengthening the Panchayati Raj,” said Anil Sharma, general secretary, All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC). A woman panch, who refused to be identified, said the government had been making “hollow promises” on empowerment of panchayats. “We want to convey to them that we are the real representatives of the people at the grass-roots level and any mischief with panchayat members would cost them the next Assembly elections,” she said. |
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Valley ready for polling amid sub-zero temperatures
Srinagar, December 2 Even as the hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Geelani had earlier urged people to keep away from voting, active campaigning was done for the poll by the mainstream parties and Independant candidates over the past few weeks. As 16 candidates from Kashmir will battle it out in the poll, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Asgar Hassan Samoon convened a meeting here today to finalise the arrangements. An official said the meeting was attended by the chief election agents and representatives of various political parties to ensure smooth conduct of the elections. For K-1 seat of the Upper House, nine candidates are contesting the poll. They include Ali Muhammad Dar of the National Conference, Peer Mohammad Hussain of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mohammad Iqbal of the Panthers Party besides Independent candidates Ghulam Hassan Dar, Mohammad Kamaal Malik, Nazir Ahmad War, Nazir Ahmad Paddar, Ghulam Mohiuddin Tantray and Ghulam-ud-din Gulshan. Seven candidates, including Congress leader and J-K Pradesh Congress Committee senior vice-president Ghulam Nabi Monga, Yasir Reshi of the PDP, Mohammad Maqbool Malik of the Panthers Party, Ashraf Ali of the BJP and three
Independent candidates are contesting the other seat in Kashmir. While the Valley has been witnessing sub-zero night temperatures after the recent snowfall in the upper reaches, an official said four special polling booths had been set up at Karnah, Keran, Buda-Nambal and Jumgund in Kupwara district because of the inclement weather conditions. After convening the meeting, the Divisional Commissioner said polling material stands had already been airlifted to facilitate voters of the areas affected by the recent snowfall. Samoon said the election would be conducted in a “free and fair manner and no violation of the model code of conduct shall be tolerated”. The counting for the poll will be held on December 6 at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre on the banks of the Dal
Lake.
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Omar now ready for 2014 elections
Srinagar, December 2 Omar, who led the campaign for the two coalition candidates in the Kashmir region and went around the Valley to address sarpanches and panches, said he enjoyed the campaigning sessions. The Chief Minister today said he would spend the day “marshalling the political troops” for Monday’s elections. “I've enjoyed being back on the campaign trail. Bring on 2014,” Omar wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter referring to the year when the state legislative assembly and parliamentary elections will be held. Omar became the 11th and the youngest Chief Minister of J-K after forming a government in coalition with the Congress on January 5, 2009. Thousands of panchayat members, who were elected in a landmark election last year and have since faced fatal threats from militant groups forcing many to publicly resign, will vote on Monday to elect four members to the Legislative Council in the state. Omar had last week hinted that fielding of joint candidates by the ruling coalition was an indicator of a grand alliance between them in the 2014 state Assembly elections. Omar’s coalition partner Congress was in alliance with the now main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the 2002 Assembly elections. The alliance ended ignominiously when the PDP withdrew support for the Congress during the 2008 agitation bringing down the then Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad. The campaign for two candidates Ali Mohammad Dar of the National Conference and Ghulam Nabi Monga of the Congress, who have been jointly fielded by the two ruling coalition partners, made Omar travel around the Valley to woo panchayat members. Omar addressed sarpanches and panches in north, south and central Kashmir in the last few days. Dar faces a tough competition from PDP candidate Peer Mohammad Hussain while Monga, who is the senior vice-president of state Congress unit, will have to mainly compete with the PDP’s Yasir Reshi. |
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BJP optimistic about winning Legislative Council elections
Jammu, December 2 Addressing a press conference, state president of the BJP Shamsher Singh Manhas today said the panchayat members had decided to vote only in their favour because only the BJP had been fighting for delegating powers to them. He said the present regime had done nothing to strengthen the Panchayati Raj Institutions in the state. Manhas expressed hope that the BJP candidates would come out victorious as people were fed up of corruption and deceptive and arrogant attitude of the present government which had refused to delegate powers to the panchayats like in other parts of the country. Rashpal Verma, Sat Sharma and Nirmal Kamal were present in the press conference. |
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Panthers Party warns govt against rigging
Jammu, December 2 In a statement issued here today, Singh accused the state government of selecting block headquarters as polling booths to defraud genuine voters. He said 50 blocks out of 66 in Jammu had no road communication or transport facility to reach polling booths. “There is no regular public transport for voters in 50 blocks,” he said, while quoting the example of his own village panchayats, Bhugerian and Chanunta. He said the panches had to reach the block headquarters in Ghordi to cast their votes. To reach Ghordi, the panchayat members have to travel by public transport from their respective villages, he said. “The panchayat members of Basantgarh or Dudu have to travel to Khaned. There is no public transport available. The panchayat members of Dhanodi (Rajouri) have to cast their votes in Kalakote. It takes five hours to reach Kalakote,” he said. Singh blamed the state government for creating hardship for the voters who had been duly elected by the people. “This is fraud and amounts to cheating the panchayats,” he said and told polling officers not be influenced by the government to rig the poll which was its intension. |
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Adequate stock of essential items in
Ladakh: Minister
Jammu, December 2 Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CA&PD) and Transport Qamar Ali Akhoon, while confirming the development said, “The stocking of essential items in Ladakh is an annual practice ahead of the winter as harsh weather conditions, including heavy snowfall, snap road links connecting the region with the rest of the state.” “The government will leave no stone unturned to provide adequate essential commodities. We have stored essential items so that people do not face any difficulty,” said the CA&PD Minister. “It is very difficult to supply essential commodities to the Ladakh region during winter because the road link has been snapped due to heavy snowfall and it is necessary to ensure the availability of necessary items well in time,” Akhoon said. The data reveals that 16,313 metric tonnes of rice, 16,215 metric tones of wheat and 1,242 metric tones of sugar have been stocked in Leh district while 12,171 metric tonnes of rice, 1,181 metric tonnes of sugar and 7,000 metric tones of flour have been stocked in Kargil district. A total of 1.32 lakh LPG cylinders have been stocked in Leh district while 71,516 cylinders in Kargil district. Nearly 2,800 kl and 1,000 kl of kerosene have been stocked in Leh and Kargil districts, respectively. Minister for Tourism and Culture Nawang Rigzin Jora said, “The issue of increasing subsidised LPG cylinders from 6 to 9 is being discussed at the national level and we are waiting for a final decision.” “As far as the stocking of essential items is concerned, the government has made elaborate arrangements to deal with any emergency during the harsh winter. Minister for Ladakh Affairs Abdul Rahim Rather has reviewed the situation twice and expressed satisfaction over arrangements,” Jora said. The Minister further said the problem being faced by the people of the Ladakh region due to power curtailment was likely to improve. “The ongoing 45 MW project of the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation in the Ladakh region will help overcome the power crisis in the region. Presently, the power supply is available for four hours between 7 am to 11 am,” said Jora. “After its commissioning, the Altchi hydel power project would go a long way in propelling the economic growth of the region, as it will cater to varied energy needs of consumers,” he said. Meanwhile, people of the Zanskar subdivision are struggling to get cooking gas due to verification of documents. Zanskar MLA Feroz Ahmad Khan said, “The local populace is facing a lot of problems due to the verification of documents for getting cooking gas.” |
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Search on for missing Kashmiri student
Srinagar, December 2 The family of the missing youth, Muneeb Gul, which hails from north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, is camping in Delhi to trace their son, who has not returned home since November 9. “Muneeb was studying mass communication at Amity International, Noida. On November 9 he had gone to meet his friend in Mayur Vihar but did not return,” said Muneeb’s father Nazir Ahmed Badoo. “We lodged a complaint with the Mayur Vihar police station, but so far there are no clues about him,” Nazir Ahmed said. Nazir said the family had not received any threatening or ransom call since Muneeb had gone missing. While Nazir had lodged a complaint with the police, he is also meeting Muneeb’s friends so that he may get any clue. So far no breakthrough has been made in the case. “Prior to Delhi, my son was studying in DAV Public School, Sector 8, Chandigarh. I have talked to his friends in Chandigarh but there is no clue,” he said. Muneeb’s father said he had visited his son’s college on November 8 where he had come to know that his son was not attending his classes regularly. “On the afternoon of November 9, his mother told him about my visit to his college. It may have upset him but that will not keep him away from the family for such a long time,” he said. The Delhi police said it was trying to trace the youth. |
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IAF to begin flight service to Kargil from Dec 5
Srinagar, December 2 Indian Air Force’s AN-32 planes will shuttle thrice a week between Kargil and Srinagar and once a week between Kargil and Jammu from this week, an official associated with the Kashmir Divisional Commissioner’s office said. The official said the arrangements for the special flight service, called Kargil Courier Service, had been made as heavy snowfall around the Zojilla last week had shut the Srinagar-Kargil road. Kargil and Leh districts remain cut off from the rest of the state for most of winter months as heavy snowfall blocks the mountainous Srinagar-Leh highway near Zojilla, a key mountainous pass located around 120 km from here. The Zojilla, where the amount of snow can accumulate up to 15 to 20 feet during winter, reopens every year after winter ends in May. The official said the Kargil residents who are stranded in the Kashmir valley could purchase the tickets for Kargil Courier through Liaison Officer at Kargil House in Bemina on the outskirts of the city from December 3. |
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Leh sees rise in HIV patients
Leh, December 2 Dolma was speaking at a function held at Moravian Mission School in Leh town on the occasion of World AIDS Day yesterday. She said 12 persons had tested positive for HIV this year while being treated for various diseases in District Hospital. She said the number of cases in the district could be high as people didn’t come out openly due to a social stigma attached with the disease. A painting exhibition among students of various schools and a skit show on HIV/AIDS were organised to mark the occasion. Maulana Omar Nadvi and Dr Lobzang Tsewang talked about responsibility in preventing HIV in the context of Islam and Buddhism, respectively. The function was organised by the district Health Department in collaboration with Women’s Alliance and the Rural Development Department.
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Jawan, cop killed in road mishap
Katra, December 2 The dead have been identified as Satbir Singh (25) of 157 Battalion of the Territorial Army, a resident of Saad in Mahore, Chain Singh (24), an SPO, and Arjun Singh (20), both residents of Shajroo. Reports said the trio met with an accident when their Tata Nano rolled down into the Angrala Pai nullah around 9:30 pm yesterday. While confirming the death of the trio, Reasi SP Mohan Lal said they were going to participate in a marriage ceremony. — OC
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The authorities on Sunday reimposed curfew in the jurisdiction of two police stations in Srinagar’s old city after renewed clashes between two groups of a community.
Jammu, December 2
The state unit of the BJP today claimed that party candidates would emerge victorious in the Legislative Council elections to be held tomorrow. It said panches and sarpanches had realised that the BJP was the only party which had been fighting for their empowerment.
