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Widespread protests in Valley
Protests rock Jammu region
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Tourism back to wait-and-watch mode
PDP holds Centre, state equally responsible
Only four died in Ramban: Omar
Militant killed as Army foils infiltration bid in Gurez sector
Govt announces Rs 5 lakh each for victims’ families
German Ambassador calls on Governor
German Ambassador Michael Steiner with Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan in Srinagar on Friday. A Tribune photograph
Cardiologist was not target: Police
4,650 continue Amarnath yatra
Two ministers visit the injured
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Widespread protests in Valley despite curfew
Srinagar, June 19 The police had barricaded and blocked roads with layers of concertina wires across the region to scuttle any attempt by protesters to hold demonstrations. Tension has been mounting in the region since Thursday morning when reports came of BSF personnel having fired on protesters in Ramban district. Four civilians were killed and more than 40 injured in Ramban when BSF personnel fired at a mob protesting against the alleged desecration of a holy book by BSF personnel. Several separatist and religious groups called for a shutdown against the killings. While the region’s Grand Mufti Bashir-ud-din called for a two-day shutdown, hardline Hurriyat faction led by Syed Ali Geelani called for a three-day closure which began today. Most of the separatist leaders, including hardliners and moderates, have been placed under detention. Markets, shops and other commercial centres as well as schools, colleges and universities remained closed in the region. The University of Kashmir and Central University Kashmir postponed all exams which were scheduled for Friday and Saturday. In Srinagar city, protests broke out at Nawab Bazar, Karfali Mohalla, Soura and at Bemina where demonstrators threw stones at police and paramilitary personnel, who responded by firing tear-gas canisters. All markets, educational institutes and banks in the city remained closed. The authorities also barred residents from offering Friday congregational prayers at several main mosques, including at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid. In Ganderbal district of central Kashmir, hundreds of protesters attempted to hold a demonstration which was foiled by police and paramilitary personnel. This led to stone-throwing by protesters. Two protesters were injured when they were hit by shots from pellet-guns at Kurhama in Ganderbal, a police official said. The official said demonstrations were held by hundreds of residents and protests broke out at several places in the region, including Bandipora, Kupwara and Baramulla districts in north Kashmir and at Shopian, Pulwama and Kulgam districts in south Kashmir. A resident of Tral town said police fired aerial shots and burst tear-gas shells to disperse a large demonstration following which protesters threw stones at police and paramilitary personnel in the area. A police spokesman said the “situation so far is under control” throughout the Kashmir
valley. Markets, schools remain closed
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Protests rock Jammu region
Jammu, July 19 After offering Friday prayers, residents of all towns and major villages in the Doda and Kishtwar districts took out processions against the killings and the alleged desecration of a holy book by BSF personnel. The protesters raised slogans and demanded strong punishment for those responsible for the incident. In Jammu, there was a protest in the Muslim-dominated areas of Talab Khatinkan, Gujjar Nagar, Ustad Mohalla and Bathindi. Some protesters blocked the Gujjar Nagar bridge before they were whisked away peacefully by police personnel. More than 10,000 persons took out a demonstration in the Bathindi area till the Narwal bypass before being dispersed. The demonstration was peaceful and the police allowed the people to show their anger. A couple of stone-throwing incidents, followed by cane-charging, were witnessed in Doda and Bhaderwah towns of Doda district. Dozens of persons were injured, who were provided first-aid at the District Hospital in Doda before getting discharged. Protests were organised in almost every area of Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar districts, but those were by and large peaceful, barring a couple of stone-throwing incidents, said Ashkoor Ahmad Wani, Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban range. Protesters pelted stones on shops in Bhaderwah which were open during the shutdown call, but the situation was brought under control immediately, he added. There was heavy police deployment in all areas to avoid any untoward incident. Police personnel were on guard in huge numbers at Muslim-dominated areas in Jammu since the morning. During Friday sermons, imams of various mosques demanded exemplary punishment for those responsible. They cautioned the government against hoodwinking and threatened of dire consequences in the future.
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Tourism back to wait-and-watch mode
Srinagar, July 19 While several tourists have cut short their visits and returned, most of the others have been forced to remain locked in their hotel rooms. “We are back in wait-and-watch situation. Barring a handful of tourists who were able to visit the Dal Lake, rest have not been able to move out of their rooms,” Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Owners Federation
(KHAROF) president Faiz Bakshi said. He said several tourists had left the Valley yesterday after the city observed a spontaneous shutdown following civilian killings by security forces during protests in the Jammu region’s Ramban district. Bakshi said several tourist bookings might get cancelled if curfew continued and if the Srinagar-Jammu national highway, the Valley’s only surface link to the rest of the country, remained closed. Another hotelier, wishing anonymity, said hoteliers had received directions from the authorities not to allow tourists to venture outside hotels or guest houses due to the prevailing situation and curfew. Stating that several tourists wanted to go back but could not due to the closure of the national highway, he said: “Tourists travelling by air were, however, allowed to go to the airport.” An official confirmed that the tourists had been directed to stay indoors. He said the same was necessary for their safety. The hoteliers had also been given contact numbers of the officials concerned in case they faced any problems. Even as the Valley witnessed tourist footfall during the last two years, the sector was hit by protests and curfew in Kashmir after the execution of Afzal Guru in February. While the sector revived later with the increase in tourist arrivals, the government had to postpone the Gurez tourism festival after the killing of two youths in north Kashmir’s Bandipore district last month. The officials have also remained tight-lipped over the tourist inflow this year even as over 12 lakh visitors had arrived in the Valley last year.
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PDP holds Centre, state equally responsible
Jammu, July 19 The PDP cautioned that such an attitude of the Centre and the state government would prove disastrous for the state and increase alienation among the masses. Addressing a meeting to discuss the situation in the Jammu region following the Ramban incident, PDP leaders expressed their anguish over the attitude of the Centre and the state government after the incident. They termed the magisterial inquiry as an eyewash to shield those responsible for the killings. Questioning the intention of the state government to properly investigate the incident and single out the real culprits, PDP leaders said a first information report should be registered and the government should order a judicial probe. They said announcing a magisterial inquiry after such an incident had become routine. They said more than 120 innocent youths were killed in the 2010 summer unrest, but not a single person had been booked so far. They alleged that the present regime had developed a culture of shielding those responsible for committing atrocities on innocent
civilians. PDP leaders said the failure of the state government to protect the lives of innocent persons had shattered the faith of the masses. They regretted that the process of peace and reconciliation started during Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's regime had been
reversed. Rangil Singh, TS Bajwa, Balbir Singh, Fallail Singh, Rashid
Malik, Surinder Choudhary, Hussain Ali Bafa and Jagjeet Singh Jagga also spoke on the occasion.
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Only four died in Ramban: Omar
Srinagar, June 19 The Chief Minister said he regretted the deaths and termed as unprofessional the inaccurate reporting of the death toll. "As deeply as I regret yesterday's deaths, the inaccurate reporting of the death tolls is unprofessional and certainly does not help us on the ground," Omar wrote on Twitter. The Chief Minister said the number of deaths in the firing in Ramban on Thursday was four. "We have had four deaths, not six (or) seven as some channels and websites are insisting," he said. The exact death toll in the BSF firing in Ramban was not clear till late on Thursday as different media groups came out with varying figures throughout the day. Requesting anonymity, the editor of a local English daily put the blame on the state government for remaining silent and not coming clear with the exact figure. "The government should have clarified in time what has happened and what the number of casualties and the injured is. No one from the government is willing to talk about the issue or even confirm the details of the incident," the editor said. Four persons were killed and more than 40 injured when BSF personnel fired at a crowd which was protesting against the desecration of the Quran at a seminary in the area. Omar said the injured were stable and out of danger. "It will certainly be expected from nationally reputed news sites that they will make an effort to report accurate news and not rumours," he said.
— TNS
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Militant killed as Army foils infiltration bid in Gurez sector
Srinagar, July 19 “The group was challenged near the fence in the Kanzalwan area of Nowshera Nar of the Gurez sector. The militants were asked to surrender but they opened fire which was retaliated, triggering an encounter. In the encounter one unidentified militant was killed,” said Col A S Pendarlean of Kupwara-based 28 Infantry Division. “The exchange of fire continued for half an hour and the remaining two militants managed to escape under the cover of thick foliage in the area. However, one militant was observed to be injured,” he added. The body of the slain militant was recovered during the wee hours on Friday. The identity of the militant could not be established immediately. The Army said it recovered one AK 47 and two rucksacks from the encounter site. The troops are continuing the search operation in the dense forest area. It is the first infiltration attempt in the Gurez sector this year which has been foiled by the Army. It is the second infiltration bid by militants in north Kashmir this month. On July 9, five unidentified militants were killed when the Army foiled an infiltration bid in the Keran sector of Kupwara district.
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Govt announces Rs 5 lakh each for victims’ families
Srinagar, July 19 An official spokesman said the Cabinet, which met here today under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, condemned the excessive use of force in the Gool area of Ramban district and extended condolences to the bereaved families and sympathies to those injured in the firing. The spokesman said the Cabinet extended an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of those killed in the firing and ordered that a government job would be provided to a family member each of those killed. The incident in which at least four persons, including a local imam and a school lecturer, were killed and 42 others injured evoked a strong reaction from mainstream and separatist political parties in Kashmir. A spontaneous shutdown and protests rocked Srinagar and other parts of the Valley soon after the news reached here on Thursday. Leaders of the National Conference, the Congress and other parties had condemned the incident and expressed concern over the use of force against unarmed persons protesting the alleged desecration on Wednesday night. — TNS
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German Ambassador calls on Governor
Srinagar, July 19 They discussed possibilities of German investors assisting the establishment of business and commercial ventures for the rapid economic growth, particularly areas in which the state was keen on foreign collaboration. They discussed opportunities available for the youth of the state to pursue education at centres of higher learning in Germany as well as availing themselves of job opportunities there. As the founder co-chairman of the Indo-European Union Round Table during 2001-08, the Governor had extensive experience of promoting bilateral and multi-lateral understanding between India and European Union member countries.
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Cardiologist was not target: Police
Srinagar, July 19 “It looks that former Director of the
Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Soura, Jalal became collateral damage,” said a police officer. “We are investigating whether it was a chance encounter or not,” he added. The doctors treating Jalal said that his condition was a bit stable. “He was operated for the second time on Friday and his condition is a bit stable,” said medical superintendent Farooq Jan.
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Srinagar, July 19
