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Pak shelling in J&K
Heavy Pak shelling triggers migration from Samba village
Village surrounded by 3 Pak posts
Pakistan again opens unprovoked firing
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Hundreds of villages along border deprived of farming
Mufti voices concern over LoC firing
on the
frontline
Cong has betrayed border residents, say BJP, NC
Mufti calls for maintaining spirit of ceasefire
Lok Sabha poll: PDP may announce social activist as candidate
After ‘hot summer’ in Srinagar, Durbar all set for a shift
83 commercial units sealed in Pahalgam
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Pak shelling in J&K
Srinagar, October 20 “There are many layers of power (in Pakistan) that includes the army, those on the path of terror and Nawaz Sharif as well. Now, he has to prove that all powers are in his hands,” Soz told reporters on the sidelines of a function here. The JKPCC chief said this in the wake of the recent infiltration bids from across the Line of Control (LoC) and reports of Pakistani shelling in some villages of Jammu and Samba districts near the international border. Without naming anybody, he said “Pakistan has to see” who was behind the shelling. However, Soz said it had been proved that the shelling was being done to facilitate infiltration and was not in the interest of Pakistan. “The path of animosity is not good for Pakistan’s development and social life…. Pakistan can never have its way by force,” he added. Asserting that the Pakistani civil society had understood that it had to live in an atmosphere of friendship with India, he also batted for dialogue to resolve the issues between the neighbouring countries. When asked whether India should give an ‘apt reply’ to Pakistan, Soz said India was “already giving apt replies”. He said infiltration bids or shelling from Pakistan should be tackled on the LoC and the international border only. On claims that infiltration attempts were taking place to derail the 2014 elections, Soz said: “India is a big democracy and won’t get distracted.” He also dismissed claims that the Indian Army was creating “confrontation” on the LoC to pave the way for BJP leader Narendra Modi to come to power. “It is an absurd claim. The Indian Army is disciplined and will never think like this,” Soz said. He went on to say that Modi “will soon come to know” that India is a secular country and its people would “associate” themselves with the Congress party. On the repeated jibes of National Conference leader Mustafa Kamal directed towards the Congress, Soz downplayed the same, saying they were “not to be taken seriously”. |
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Heavy Pak shelling triggers migration from Samba village
Suchetgarh-Kulian, October 20 On the ‘fateful’ night, Pakistan Rangers rained bullets and fired nearly a dozen mortars (82 mm) on the Suchetgarh-Kulian village, causing panic in six forward villages of Sadoh Panchayat - Suchetgarh-Kulian, Avtal Katlan, Rakh Kangwala, Rakh Kangwala SC, Jatan and Channi Jassu. The panicky villagers took refuge 8 km away in a community hall in Kalibari village in Samba district around 8 pm yesterday but none from the district administration visited them except local MLA Yashpal Kundal, who today brought some rice for the starving villagers, including children. This was first migration from a border village after the 1971 and 1965 conflicts with Pakistan. “Fifty families having nearly 200 members took refuge in this community hall around 8 pm yesterday but no senior official from the civil administration except a naib tehsildar and an SHO (station house officer) beside local MLA Yashpal Kundal visited us,” said village sarpanch Darshan Singh. “We were forced to flee our homes but look at the indifferent attitude of the administration. No food or bedding has been providing to these women and children,” said Som Nath of Avtlan Katlan village. Roop Singh of Suchetgarh-Kulian said, “One male member from every family that has taken refuge here is staying back in the village to look after the house and cattle.” Kunti Devi (52) of Suchetgarh-Kulian expressed disappointment over the apathetic “Shelling of such a magnitude happened after a decade and who else could feel the pain more. I lost my 27-year-old nephew Deepak Kumar, who was killed instantly after being hit by a Pakistani bullet in his house,” she said. “Here in this community hall, we are managing everything, from food to bedding, on our own. No help whatsoever has so far been provided by the administration,” she added. Local MLA Yashpal Kundal, who visited the villagers in the community hall after 30 hours of the development with some rice, said Samba Deputy Commissioner RK Verma had allegedly refused to provide any help to the displaced families. Another old woman of the same village, Mango Devi, said the Samba DC had not visited the families in the community hall. Meanwhile, Suchetgarh-Kulian village wore a deserted look today. Locked houses, shops and unattended cattle with a few odd men peeping out of their houses conveyed the fear.
Village surrounded by 3 Pak posts
Situated virtually on the Zero Line, the village is surrounded by three Pakistani posts — Tandar, Chawal and Tamana — from the three sides. “We lost 27-year-old Deepak Kumar, when he was hit by a Pakistani bullet in his house some 10 years back,” said Bodh Raj, a resident of the village. “If firing continues like this, our village will be the worst sufferer because we are surrounded by at least three of their posts and their fire comes directly into our houses,” he added. Tirath Ram, another villager, said similar shelling in 2001 after Parliament attack had forced villagers to migrate. “We had to move to the Panjtilla camp and remain there for several months,” he said. —
TNS
Pakistan again opens unprovoked firing
Jammu, October 20 “Pakistan again resorted to unprovoked small arms fire at Abdulian border outpost of the BSF in the RS Pura sector of Jammu district around 12.45 pm,” said BSF spokesperson Vinod
Yadav. He said the BSF did not retaliate and exercised restraint. “In the morning, the Rangers also fired on some BSF posts in the Pargwal sector of Akhnoor subdivision and in the Hiranagar sector. While the BSF again exercised restraint in the Hiranagar sector, a mild retaliation was done in
Pargwal,” he said. A BSF source said the BSF exercised restraint to de-escalate the tension on the borders. However, it has been reliably learnt that in the Hiranagar sector the Rangers targeted the Kothe and Pansar posts of the
BSF. Earlier during the day Kathua Deputy Commissioner Jatinder Singh visited Gujjar
Chak, a forward village in Hiranagar, where he took stock of the situation and talked to villagers in a bid to instil a sense of security among them. Sources said the villagers were demanding that they should be given compensation for the loss of their standing crops, which they have not been able to harvest due to Pakistani firing. The DC assured them that their case would be taken up with Jammu Divisional Commissioner
Shantmanu. Meanwhile, villagers of Saidechak and Dormechak - two forward villages in Samba district — may also migrate in the wake of Pakistani shelling.
Hundreds of villages along border deprived of farming
Suchetgarh-Kulian, Oct 20 “While cattle remain unattended, we are not able to harvest our paddy crop because of shelling,” said Balbir Singh, a resident of Jatan village, Samba sector. “Heavy shelling on October 18 and 19 has instilled a sense of fear and insecurity among us. How can we harvest our crop in such a turbulent situation?” he said. Pritam Kumar of Suchetgarh Kulian said, “The paddy crop is ready for harvest. We had just started harvesting it when they opened fire. Now, things look bleak.” Surender Singh, a resident of Rakh Kangwala, said a majority of people in the border areas relied upon farming. “Farming is the most important source of livelihood for the people in the border areas and when they start firing, we not only fear displacement but also starvation,” he said. He said it was high time for both the countries to restore the ceasefire agreement in order so that they could live in peace. “It is not just we who get affected by the firing. People on the other side of the border also have to bear the brunt of the unrest. The BSF has also inflicted serious damage to the Rangers opposite Suchetgarh-Kulian, damaging one of their posts. Villagers on that side have also migrated,” he added. Daleep Sing of Jatan village said Pakistan should realise the futility of violence and instead of forcing India into this dirty game, it should fight poverty and illiteracy. “Both Pakistan and India should work cohesively to remove poverty than engaging us in cross-border firing and militancy. Violence would do no good to anyone,” he said.
Mufti voices concern over LoC firing
Srinagar, October 20 Mufti said skirmishes on the borders were a result of the "failure of both India and Pakistan governments to take peace process to a logical conclusion".He said instead of reacting in a "knee-jerk manner", India and Pakistan should maintain the "spirit of ceasefire".
He also cautioned against dangerous consequences of any escalation. — TNS |
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on the
frontline
Bullets and shells are flying into Indian villages and residents are thinking of other options, whether to stay back in their homes under the shroud of fear or leave for safer areas. They have suffered injuries and they now fear death. At the same time, the ceasefire is dead with nearly 200 violations by the Pakistani army this year so far. The Pakistani army and Rangers have effectively killed the ceasefire and buried it and no tears are being shed over it. The ceasefire on the borders was an idea that caught the imagination of the leaders of the two countries — then Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Pakistani president General Pervez Musharraf. The two armies were also relieved because no one but the soldiers love peace the most. And it was decided that the guns would fall silent from Siachen Glacier to the Line of Control (LoC) and then to the international border in Jammu and Kashmir. Consequently, the ceasefire was born on Eid-ul-Fitr day on November 26, 2003. The ceasefire had led to Islamabad Declaration in January 2004, in which Pakistan declared that it would not allow its territory or territory under its control (read Pakistan-occupied Kashmir) for any terrorist activity against India. There was jubilation all around. Sweets were exchanged on the borders and the villagers returned to their abandoned houses. To their utter disbelief, there was complete silence. The usual rattling noise of the explosion of mortar shells and the bullets flying here and there were nowhere to be heard or seen. They returned to their villages and tended their fields and new schools came up and children started going to schools. When Pakistan started facing the heat on its western borders, where it had to fight its own men — Taliban, the cadres of which were armed and trained by the Pakistani army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) — it backtracked from its commitment and started unprovoked firing on its eastern borders. The ceasefire had brought relief to the border people in Jammu and Kashmir and they had started turning away from militancy. The Pakistani establishment thought that it was taking Kashmir out of the focus of the international attention, as the cross-LoC bus service and trade between the two countries and exchange of delegations and people-to-people contact that followed the ceasefire pact was scripting a new chapter in the history of Jammu and Kashmir. General Musharraf’s four-point formula — irrelevant borders, self-governance, demilitarisation and an overarching legislative body — to look after the affairs of the two parts of Jammu and Kashmir, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s declaration that the borders would be reduced to a line on the map generated a buzz for peace in the Valley and other parts of Jammu and Kashmir. The hands of people went up in the air and sought permanent peace on borders and the hinterland. The prayers were answered for a while, but the peace on the borders was short-lived, as the villagers have now started migrating from the shell-hit villages. When Manmohan Singh met with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in New York, the only positive outcome was that the two countries would ask their respective Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) to work out a plan to restore the ceasefire, battered by the Pakistani fire and the retaliatory fire by the
Indian Army. Instead of that happening, what has come out is that the tensions along the LoC and the international border have heightened, and Pakistan has started targeting Indian civilians apart from manned posts of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Army. This renege on the promise by Nawaz Sharif is full of ominous portents.
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10 ‘prominent faces’ join Cong
Srinagar, October 20 Speaking on the occasion, JKPCC president Saifuddin Soz said the Congress was in a ‘vibrant situation’ with the joining of 10 faces that include former leaders of the ruling National Conference (NC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) besides retired bureaucrats. He also described them as the most prominent political leaders. Those who joined the Congress included former minister and three-time MLA from Budgam Gulam Hassan Geelani, former Director of Information Farooq A Renzu, former vice-president J&K Bank Tafazul Hussain, superintendent engineer (retd) of the R&B Wali Mohd Dar, retd officer of the Rural Development Shiekh GM Gulzar, sarpanch Kichhama Bashir Ahmad Shah, former president of the Baramulla Municipal Corporation Abdul Rashid Malla, Gulam Hassan Rather, Mushtaq Ahmad Bazaz and Waseem Shalla. Besides, 300 youth activists also joined the party, said the JKPCC press and publicity secretary. Soz said over 1,000 more persons wished to join the Congress. “But where should we keep them? We have a place for them in our hearts nonetheless,” he said. The JKPCC will hold another function in Jammu tomorrow to welcome other ‘prominent’ faces. Several among those who joined the Congress spoke on the occasion and vowed to strengthen the party. Geelani, who was previously associated with the NC and PDP, said he was impressed with the policies of the Congress. Renzu said he, in the past, had strongly advocated public interactions and would continue to do the same for the sake of development. Malla, who had served as the PDP zonal president, said he joined the Congress after Soz had taken active interest in the developmental activities in Baramulla district. Minister for Medical Education, Sports and Youth Services Taj Mohi-ud-Din, MoS for Health Shabir Ahmad Khan, besides other Congress leaders, including Mohammad Muzaffar Parray, Gulam Nabi Monga, Bashir Magrey and Abdul Gani Khan were present on the occasion. |
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Cong has betrayed border residents, say
BJP, NC
Jammu, October 20 “The Congress has been enjoying power in the state since 2002, but the party leadership has no time to mitigate the miseries of border residents,” Jugal said. During the 2002 Assembly elections, when tension was running high on the borders, the Congress leadership had promised to provide alternative shelters to those border residents, who live in the firing range. But even after the passage of 11 years, this promise remains only on papers. “The Congress has betrayed border residents, as promises made by them are yet to be implemented on the ground,” regretted Ashwani Sharma, Member of Legislative Assembly from the border tehsil of Bishnah. “During the 2002 Assembly elections, the Congress had promised to create safer zones for border inhabitants, but no action has been taken so far,” he said. “When the PDP-Congress coalition government was formed in the year 2002, issue of development of safer zones was also incorporated in the Common Minimum Programme,” he recalled. He, however, rued that except promises nothing has been done for helpless border residents. Senior National Conference leader and MLA Vijaypur Surjeet Singh Slathia observed that the promise of safer zones for border inhabitants was just a “political slogan” to hoodwink the people. “Is it possible to take away all border residents from their native places?” Salathia asked. Even as the NC is heading the government in the state, Slathia put the onus on the coalition partners Congress to fulfil the promise of providing alternative shelter to the border residents. “Those who had made this promise should fulfil it,” he said. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee spokesman Ravinder Sharma argued that the issue of creation of safer zones went to the back-burner due to peace on the border. “It is only since last few months that border has become active again. So Congress has reiterated its demand of creating safer zones for those who live in the firing range near the international border and the Line of Control,” the spokesman said. He also sought to draw attention towards a resolution passed in the Congress convention on August 31 this year regarding the issue. Pakistan has resorted to heavy firing along the international border and the Line of Control since last couple of months, instilling fear among the people living along the fence. |
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Mufti calls for maintaining spirit of ceasefire
Srinagar, October 20 Mufti said skirmishes on the borders were a result of the "failure of both India and Pakistan governments to take peace process to a logical conclusion". He said instead of reacting in a "knee-jerk manner", India and Pakistan should maintain the "spirit of ceasefire". “The situation necessitate that instead of indulge into provocative utterance, both the countries should continue the process of dialogue to prevent another era of turmoil in this subcontinent," Mufti said while addressing a meeting of the district committee at Kulgam. He also cautioned against dangerous consequences of any escalation.
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Lok Sabha poll: PDP may announce social activist as candidate
Jammu, October 20 Sources in the PDP said party patron and former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed would make theis announcement during a meeting of the party leaders on Tuesday. Malik had joined the PDP a couple of months ago. The sources further said the decision of make Malik a party candidate had already been taken at a meeting of the Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the party. The PDP has taken a lead in the political arena because it has already announced veteran leader Yash Pal Sharma as a candidate for the Jammu-Poonch Lok Sabha seat. |
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After ‘hot summer’ in Srinagar, Durbar all set for a shift
Srinagar, October 20 When Chief Minister Omar Abdullah began his fifth consecutive summer innings in Srinagar, he was already faced with the developments related to the attack on Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah Haq in a Jammu jail, spurious drugs scam in Kashmir, allegations of corruption against some ministers and the Chinese incursion in Ladakh. In his opening note, Omar had vowed good governance and transparency. His government claims to have made a considerable progress on different fronts, including the improvement in the law and order situation, power supplies and road connectivity. Besides maintaining law and order conditions, the government also had to face a hectic task of managing the annual Amarnath Yatra. While it was relatively a peaceful session, the mainstream parties-- National Conference, Congress and the PDP-- were engaged in hectic political activities across the region. A number of political rallies were organised in different parts of the Valley. Several leaders made public appearances in their constituencies and far-flung areas. But former Army Chief VK Singh’s remarks on the payments to ministers of Jammu and Kashmir since the Independence turned out to be the most crucial moment for the Omar-led coalition government and all other mainstream political parties. The leaders belonging to all these parties were taken aback by the revelations made by the former Army Chief. The issue came up in the brief session of the state legislature late last month. By dint of a privilege motion of the ruling National Conference in the state Assembly, the Speaker, on the concluding day of the session, said the former Army Chief would be summoned to the House to explain the allegations. It would be this baggage of developments over VK Singh’s remarks and the incidents of continued cross-border firing in parts of the Jammu region that the government shifts from here for the winter months.
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83 commercial units sealed in Pahalgam
Anantnag, October 20 “We have sealed these hotels, guest houses and restaurants in cognisance with the High Court orders issued on October 8,” said Reyaz Ahmad, PDA chief executive officer. He said the hotels had failed to comply with the court orders of getting an NOC from the SPCB. They would have to get an order from the court to resume their commercial operations. “The sealed establishments include category A, B, C and D based on the number of rooms and pollution norms,” said the CEO.
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Intense shelling by Pakistan on October 18-19 night on the international border in the Samba sector triggered migration of over 50 families last night from this village on the Zero Line.
Shelling by Pakistan along the 191.5-km-long international border seems to have brought back the gory days and starvation for thousands of border residents in the state. Nearly 40,000 villagers living along the international border have been deprived of farming, their only source of livelihood.
SAMBA: Suchetgarh-Kulian village in Samba district that lost a young man in hostile fire of Pakistan Rangers a decade back is a soft target for the enemy.
In a little over a month’s time, India and Pakistan would have celebrated 10 years of ceasefire on borders. That is not to be. This was the biggest ever confidence-building measure between India and Pakistan since Independence. The story has turned the other way around now. Instead of turning 10 on November 26, 2013, the ceasefire which came into effect on the festival day of Eid-ul-Fitr is now almost dead.