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BJP may skip Art 370 in
manifesto
Families of slain Budgam youths reject compensation
Robin Raphel, pre-determined Pak cheerleader on Kashmir
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Killings due to ‘mistaken identity’ not new in state
Jethmalani backs Musharraf’s formula on Kashmir issue
Cong veteran Karan Singh’s son to join saffron party today
3 killed in avalanche JD(U) to back PDP in polls Resignations: Omar says deadwood clearing itself
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BJP may skip Art 370 in
manifesto
Srinagar, November 8 “This discussion on the issue (Article 370) has been on for long and it will continue. The manifesto of the party for the Assembly polls is not out yet, let it come,” Gill told reporters on the sidelines of a function, where nearly 100 persons from various walks of life joined the BJP. He said the party would be releasing its manifesto soon. On the allegations that the Union Government is delaying the announcement of relief package for the flood victims of the state, he said it was not true. “The package for the flood victims is being worked out by the government in Delhi and there is no delay from the Union Government,” said Gill. The BJP leader said the party was hopeful of achieving its “mission 44” in the upcoming elections in J&K. “The people have seen the working of the Modi government and that is why we are sure that we will achieve our mission. The Modi wave can be felt everywhere and Kashmir is no exception,” he said, adding that the BJP agenda was peace, development and progress. The new entrants were welcomed into the party fold by Gill and other party leaders GM Mir, Dr Ali Mohammad Mir, Khalid Jehangir, Altaf Thakur, Dr Hina Shafi Bhat, Dr Darakhshan Andrabi and Ashraf Reshi. |
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Families of slain Budgam youths reject compensation
Srinagar, November 8 The two youths — Faisal Yusuf, 17, and Mehraj-ud-Din, 21, — were killed and two others injured on Monday evening when troops of the 53 Rashtriya Rifles, manning a checkpoint at Chattergam village in Budgam, opened fire at the car in which the four youths were travelling. The slain youths were residents of the Nowgam locality on the outskirts of Srinagar, which has observed a shutdown for the past five days amid protests. The Army yesterday took “responsibility” for the killing of the two youths, saying it “admits the mistake has happened”. General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command Lt Gen DS Hooda also announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of those killed and Rs 5 lakh for the injured. “The pictures of those who murdered our boys should be published so that we know who they were. They should be punished so our demand is fulfilled,” Mehraj’s father said. Yusuf Bin Rehman, father of slain teenager Faisal Yusuf, also rejected the compensation. “When my son left from here (his home), he was not carrying a gun or stone. He was a young boy and they made holes in his body. And, regarding the statement of Lt Gen (DS Hooda), has he put a price tag of Rs 10 lakh on our children?” Rehman asked. |
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Robin Raphel, pre-determined Pak cheerleader on Kashmir
Jammu, November 8 The former diplomat is now under investigation by the counter-intelligence wing of the FBI in the US. She is being investigated for unspecified charges but her more than sympathetic attitude towards Pakistan was evident in her reports on Kashmir, which she filed during her long diplomatic career. Why she had that kind of anti-India and die-hard pro-Pakistan attitude has become clear to the officers who had interacted with her during her Kashmir visits. Her pro-Pakistan articulation and reports have something to do with the ongoing investigations by the FBI against her, suspect sources here. It was not merely a coincidence that when the authorities were close to resolving the Hazratbal crisis in October 1993, Robin Raphel issued a statement claiming that the Instrument of Accession, signed by Maharaja Hari Singh with India in 1947, was questionable. This statement boosted the morale of the militants inside the Hazratbal shrine and the separatists, causing delay in the resolution of the crisis. She had played a spoilsport. It was clear from the timings of her statement and the ripple effect it had. At times, she would also exaggerate her reports. A well-known fact about her is that she had cultivated ties with some senior officials, most of whom had their own agenda against India and were vocal about India because of the separatist influence on them. A senior civil officer who was in the limelight for holding negotiations with militants who had occupied the shrine was also in touch with her. During subsequent years, many officers of the civil administration, known for their India bashing, were constantly feeding her with half truths on Kashmir, the sources said. In her reports, she wrote what suited Pakistan, accusing the Indian Army of atrocities. Now it seems that she deliberately ignored infiltration from across the border, militants training camps across the LoC and the border, in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan, sources said. On March 7, 1995, in her testimony to the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, she coined the term “Kashmir dispute” in the diplomatic lexicon of the US, which pleased no end the separatists and Pakistan. She was already leaning towards Pakistan and this further confirmed that “she had a pre-determined agenda of internationalising Kashmir as a nuclear flash point”, a line that Pakistan later followed. In May 1993, when she landed in Srinagar, Raphel looked like a journalist, with a carry bag on her shoulders. That she was someone important came to be known when two senior police officers were seen receiving her at the tarmac. During that visit, she made it a point to meet all separatists, particularly Syed Ali Shah Geelani, and gave audience to local journalists. She was also briefed by security advisers to the Governor, Chief Secretaries, DGPs and the Army and shown the militant commanders who told her how they were trained and armed by Pakistan and sent to create trouble in Kashmir. But she never wrote anything against Pakistan in her reports, the sources said. The US diplomat visited Kashmir several times thereafter but while she met both sides, separatists were high on her appointments. Leaders such as CPM’s MY Tarigami and National Conference’s Mohammad Sayeed Akhoon would also meet her. However, when she prepared reports, it was all about human rights violations and she never reported the other side, a highly placed source said. “We always wondered why she ignored the other side. Her reports never reflected the real picture. It was always one-sided and pro-Pakistan. That was our regret. Now, we know that why Raphel did so,” a senior officer who had interacted with her during her visits to the Valley told The Tribune. “Now, we understand that our doubts about her were not unfounded,” the officer said. |
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Killings due to ‘mistaken identity’ not new in state
Jammu, November 8 “In the name of mistaken identity how could you justify killing of innocent boys? Those who lose their kith and kin die every day. They undergo agonising pain that can’t be described in words,” added Ashraf. Can money ever be a compensation for a human life? he asked. Kashmir has been seething since teenaged Faisal and his friend Mehraj were killed and two others injured after soldiers of 53 Rashtriya Rifles opened fire on their car at Chattergam suspecting them to be militants. A fifth occupant of the car escaped unhurt. The incident took place at the same spot where two years ago an Army team had killed two of its own soldiers and injured three others in a case of “mistaken identity”. The same incident at the same place on November 3 has raised a serious question mark over the Army’s standard operating procedure and intelligence network, which had tipped off movement of terrorists on the same road on the fateful day. In January this year, the Army after 14 years closed the Pathribal fake encounter case, saying evidence recorded could not establish prima facie charges. The CBI had indicted five Armymen. An extremely disappointed CM Omar Abdullah had said the state law authorities would be asked to examine options to address this “serious” matter. In the Machhil fake encounter case of April 30, 2010, the Army, on December 25, 2013, ordered court martial of two officers and four soldiers for their involvement in the killing of three “Pakistani militants”. |
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Jethmalani backs Musharraf’s formula on Kashmir issue
Srinagar, November 8 “He
(Musharraf) came to India with a firm and honest intention. His proposal is a fantastic solution to the Kashmir problem. It is a wonderful document which should be the basis for a permanent solution of Kashmir. I have no difficulty in confessing that his efforts were frustrated by India and not Pakistan,” Jethmalani told reporters here today. The veteran lawyer, who is also the chairman of the Kashmir Committee formed in 2002, claimed that Musharraf knew that I had been working on the Kashmir issue for a long time and he had sent his proposal to him me through a common friend for the
study. Jethmalani, however, said he had made some changes to the proposal which Musharraf accepted. “I have been working for Kashmir for a long time and Musharraf knew that. He sent his proposal to me through a common friend. I made some changes to the document as part of the proposals on behalf of the Kashmir Committee which Musharraf accepted,” the 92-year-old said, adding the whole purpose of the document was that there should be a “secular democracy” on both sides of Kashmir. |
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4 CRPF men injured
in militant attack Srinagar/Anantnag, Nov 8 The CRPF personnel were injured after suspected militants ambushed their vehicle on Saturday evening in the Lewdoora area of Qazigund along the Jammu- Srinagar National Highway in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district. Police reports reveal a patrol vehicle, belonging to 163 battalion of the CRPF, was attacked near Tourist Reception Centre in Lewdoora around 5.45 pm. Meanwhile, a 24-year-old divisional commander of the Jaish, Sadeeq Ahmad, alias Sadiq, a resident of Haripore Khyber Pakhtoon Khan, Pakistan, was arrested in a joint operation by the police, Army and CRPF near Sopore, a police spokesperson in Srinagar said.
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Cong veteran Karan Singh’s son to join saffron party today
New Delhi, November 8 Presently Ajatshatru is a member of the National Conference, which is ruling in Jammu and Kashmir in alliance with
the Congress. He will contest from the Nagrota Assembly segment, which state BJP president Jugal Kishore Sharma currently represents in the state Assembly. The move on election eve is being viewed as a shot in the arm of the BJP, which is seeking to win 44 seats in the 87-member Assembly. The Congress on the other hand is looking weak bearing the burden of anti-incumbency and perceived lack of adequate response to the recent floods in Kashmir. For the Congress, the continuing exodus of important leaders is a matter of growing concern. Earlier, another son of Karan Singh had joined the PDP. Top Congress leaders said while the development of their veteran leader’s son joining the BJP on the poll eve does send confusing signals to the voters, the leader himself can’t be held responsible for his children’s choices. Earlier, former Deputy Chief Minister and Congress leader Mangat Ram Sharma had also joined the PDP with his elder son. The Congress responded to this move by fielding Mangat Ram’s younger son Ranish from Bani in the Jammu division. |
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Chaman Lal back in BJP fold
Jammu, November 8 Welcoming Chaman Lal in to the party, Rajya Sabha member and BJP in charge of Jammu and Kashmir affairs Avinash Rai Khanna said Prof Chaman Lal Gupta had vast political experience. “Prof Gupta will obviously prove to be beneficial for the party in the ensuing Assembly elections and for our mission of winning a minimum of 44 seats. His being known to the rank and file of the party is going to be helpful in electioneering,” Khanna said. He hoped that Chaman Lal would put his best efforts in to electioneering. Chaman Lal, on the occasion, said his being among his party colleagues was a happy augury for him and would enable him to continue his mission of public service, especially of the Jammu region. He said it would be his endeavour to put his full weight behind the party efforts in the ensuing elections. |
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The families of the two slain youths, killed in Army firing in Budgam district, today rejected the Army compensation of Rs 10 lakh each. They demanded that justice be done by punishing the assailants.
