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Tremor jolts Kashmir, causes fear and panic

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Kashmir

Jammu/Srinagar: An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale jolted Kashmir on Saturday causing widespread fear and panic.

“An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale occurred at 12.44 a.m. The epicentre of the tremor was in the Hindukush region of Afghanistan,” an official of the Met department said here.

“Its coordinates were latitude 36.5 degrees north and longitude 71.2 degrees east. The depth of the quake was 186 Kilometres,” the official added.

People were jolted out of sleep after tremors were felt in Srinagar. In Jammu, residents were in the grip of fear due to the earthquake.

“I Thought some massive explosion had occurred outside our house,” a Jammu resident said.

No loss of life has been reported from anywhere in the state so far.

“It is too early to say as the earthquake occurred after midnight. We are gathering information to be absolutely certain,” said a senior officer of the state government.

More than 45,000 people were killed across divided Kashmir and properties worth billions destroyed in a 7.6 magnitude temblor that hit Jammu and Kashmir on October 8, 2005.

(IANS)

Modi gives Rs. 80,000 crore economic package to J&K

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Narendra_Modi

Srinagar: Restrictions were imposed on Saturday in parts of Srinagar ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kashmir.

A senior police officer said restrictions have been imposed in old city and uptown areas of Srinagar falling under the jurisdictions of Khanyar, Rainawari, Nowhatta, M.R. Gunj, Safakadal, Kralkhud and Maisuma police stations.

Razor fitted concertina wire coils were placed across traffic crossings on the main roads in the areas where restrictions were imposed.

Senior separatist leaders including hardliner Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabir Shah, Nayeem Khan, and Asiya Andrabi were placed under preventive detention.

Separatists had called for a parallel rally on Saturday in Srinagar barely half a km away from the venue of Modi’s public rally.

Authorities had conveyed to Geelani that permission for the rally was declined because of the prime minister’s visit the same day.

Unprecedented security arrangements were seen in Srinagar city on Saturday as police personnel and paramilitary central reserve police force (CRPF) troopers wearing bullet proof vests and holding automatic weapons took up positions along roads and at important installations.

All roads leading to Sher-e-Kashmir cricket stadium were sealed for vehicular movement.

Passage on these roads is regulated through special passes issued to security forces and other participants.

Modi is scheduled to arrive here at 11.30 a.m., and will address the public rally at noon.

He will fly to Chanderkote in Ramban district at 1 p.m. where he will inaugurate the 450 megawatt phase second of Baglihar power project.

The prime minister will also inaugurate the four laning of the Udhampur-Bannihal stretch of Jammu-Srinagar national highway.

All shops, public transport, other businesses and educational institutions remained closed in Srinagar city.

Train services from Bannihal town in Ramban district to Baramulla town in Kashmir Valley have also been suspended for the day.

Only one-way traffic will be allowed from Srinagar to Jammu on the national highway on Saturday.

(Agencies)

Kashmir truck attack victim dies, violence rages

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Kashmir truck attack victim dies

Srinagar: Violence raged in parts of the Kashmir Valley on Sunday after a victim of a bomb attack on a truck in Udhampur on October 9 died in Delhi, police and residents said.

Zahid Rasool Bhat, who was being treated for serious burn injuries in Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital, died early on Sunday, a police officer told IANS here. Some reports said Bhat was 16 years old, while other reports said he was in his early 20s.

Bhat and another Kashmiri from Anantnag district, Showkat Ahmad Dar, 35, sustained major injuries when a mob hurled a petrol bomb on their stationary truck at Udhampur on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

Udhampur District Magistrate Shahid Chowdhary on Sunday said that murder charges had been added to the FIR against the five attackers arrested earlier.

They were first accused of rioting and stoking communal passion.

The accused are Sandoor Singh, Danish alias Pamma, Harish Singh, Balbahadur Singh and Varinder Singh alias Kaka.

The accused were also booked under the Public Safety Act, normally used against terrorists in the country’s only Muslim-majority state.

The attack took place following a beef party hosted by independent legislator Engineer Rashid in Srinagar.

As news of the death in Delhi spread on Sunday, mobs took to the streets in the southern district of Anantnag in the Kashmir Valley and blocked the Jammu-Srinagar highway by burning tyres.

The highway is the most strategic road link between the Kashmir Valley and the rest of India.

They also pelted stones at security personnel who tried to disperse them with tear gas, triggering street battles.

Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq meanwhile said the government was to blame for Bhat’s death as it failed to provide security to the truckers.

The separatists have called for a shutdown in the Kashmir Valley on Monday.

Both the victims of the attack were flown to Safdarjung Hospital which specializes in treating burn injuries.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed had visited them at the hospital three days back.

(IANS)

Ink attack on J&K MLA Engineer Rashid at Press Club of India

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Engineer Rashid

New Delhi: Engineer Rashid, an independent MLA from Jammu and Kashmir, was attacked with ink and oil by three men at Press Club of India premises on Monday afternoon.

 

The attack took place minutes after Mr. Rashid addressed the media on the issue of death of one of the three persons attacked in Udhampur over beef rumours earlier this month.

Two people behind the attack in Delhi’s Press Club were detained by police.

According to news agencies, Vishnu Gupta-led Hindu Sena has claimed responsibility for the attack on Mr. Rashid.

The legislator later told the media that “the world will see what India has turned into.”

“They say Pakistan has been taken over by Taliban but look what’s happening here,” he said.

Only a few days back, Mr. Rashid was assaulted by BJP legislators in Jammu & Kashmir Assembly, for hosting a ‘beef party’.

Prior to the attack, Mr. Rashid had hit out at the Central Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for their “intolerance” towards the minority community. He had demanded that Mr. Modi apologise for the Dadri and Udhampur incidents.

The families of the victims have demanded compensation equal to that paid to the kin of the Dadri lynch victim. They have also sought that the case be fast-tracked and the guilty hanged soon.

(Agencies)

Muslim MLA attacked by BJP legislators for hosting beef party

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Srinagar: Independent MLA Sheikh Abdul Rashid was today thrashed by some BJP legislators in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly for throwing a beef party here, triggering an uproar from the opposition which staged a walkout.

The manhandling of the MLA, who had thrown a beef party at the MLA hostel here yesterday, came on a day the Assembly is scheduled to take up a bill on the ban on the meat.

As BJP MLAs assaulted him, several NC and Congress MLAs rushed to save him.

The assault on the floor of the House triggered an angry reaction from the opposition with National Conference leader Omar Abdullah saying it was impossible to digest the incident.

“What happened today is impossible to digest. An honourable member being assaulted in the house. It seems that they wanted to murder him (Rashid). If he had done anything that was objectionable that should have been put on record,” the former Chief Minister said.

On the beef ban issue, Omar said, “Our sentiments are also attached to this issue… We don’t force our religion on you. My religion prohibits consumption of alcohol and pork… Do I assault everyone who eats pork or alcohol,” he said, demanding that the Chief Minister make a statement on the issue.

Condemning the assault, Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed said sentiments should be kept under check. “I condemn this incident. The House has good tradition ….sentiments should be kept under control. I ask Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh to apologise for the misconduct of his party MLAs,” he said.

Singh on his part said, “We do not approve of what happened in the Assembly today. But what happened in the MLAs hostel yesterday was also wrong,” he said, referring to yesterday’s beef party.

The Deputy Chief Minister stopped short of apologising for the incident following which the entire opposition staged a walkout. BJP MLA Ravinder Raina said Rashid had hurt the sentiments of Hindus.

“It was not a case of physical manhandling. He has hurt the sentiments of Hindus. I did not beat him,” he said. “Engineer Rashid hosted a beef party last night, It hurt my sentiments. I conveyed the message to the Chief Minister and called SHO but no action was taken against him” he said.

Rashid, the legislator from Langate, had yesterday hosted the beef party in the lawns of MLA hostel here, with the guests being served beef kebabs, ‘ristas’ (meat balls) and beef patties.

Rashid had claimed that he did not want to offend anyone but wanted to send a message that “no court or legislature can prevent the people from eating what they want”.

The step was “just to give them (legislators) a clear message that it hardly makes any difference whether you accept or reject the bill… religious matters cannot be kept subservient to courts and assembly,” the MLA had said. “Nobody on earth, no assembly, no court and no institution can stop us from having what we want to have,” he added.

The beef row erupted after a division bench of High Court in Jammu directed the state to strictly implement the ban in the state as per the law.

The order had evoked strong resentment from various quarters with many separatist and religious organisations terming it as “interference in religious affairs” and sought revocation of the law, besides pressing for implementation of ban on liquor in the state. The issue is now before the Supreme Court.

(Agencies)

Four soldiers, one militant killed in Kashmir gun battles

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Jammu Kashmir

Srinagar: At least four soldiers and one militant were killed on Monday as two gun battles raged in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

“Four soldiers were killed in an ongoing encounter with militants in Hafruda forests of Kupwara district near the Line of Control (LoC) today (Monday),” a senior police officer told IANS here.

“Earlier today (Monday), one militant was killed in Darpora village of Kupwara.”

Both the gunfights took place in two different areas of Kupwara district.

“The group of militants engaged in an encounter near the LoC had infiltrated into the Kashmir Valley recently,” the officer added.

(IANS)

SC suspends beef ban in J&K for two months, asks high court to form bench

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Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today suspended for two months a controversial court order for enforcing ban on the sale of beef in Jammu and Kashmir while asking the Chief Justice of J-K High Court to set up a three-judge bench to decide on two conflicting orders on the issue.

A bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu directed that the September 8 order of the Jammu bench of the High Court, by which it had ordered enforcement of ban on sale of beef in the state in pursuance of Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) provisions, be kept in abeyance for two months.

The bench also referred to the order passed by another division bench of high court at Srinagar in which the state was given liberty to amend the RPC provision in question.

The bench, also comprising Justice Amitava Roy, said, “Since there are conflicting expressions given by two division benches of the high court, we request the learned Chief Justice to constitute a bench of three learned judges to take a decision on the writ petitions.”

Asking the apex court registry to intimate its counter part about the order “forthwith”, the court further said that the Chief Justice of the high court will be at liberty to decide the place where the larger bench will hear and decide together the two writ petitions.

The bench disposed of the petition filed by the state government which had said that the inconsistent views of the two benches of the high court were being “misused” to disturb peace and communal harmony in the state.

While the Jammu bench of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court had ordered enforcement of the bar on the sale of beef in the state under the RPC, the Srinagar bench agreed to hear a separate plea seeking scrapping of the provision that bars slaughter of bovine animals.

The order asking the police to enforce the beef ban had led to strong protests in the state and forced a three-day internet shutdown during the Eid festival to avert any flare-ups.

The state, in its plea, had said, “Vide impugned orders of Jammu & Srinagar Benches of the Jammu & Kashmir High Court… have passed two mutually conflicting orders which have grave ramifications for the law and order situation in the State of Jammu and Kashmir as orders are being misused and interpreted in a manner so as to disturb peaceful fabric of the State.”

It had said that the apex court should “ensure there is uniformity and consistency in judicial pronouncements and no scope to exploit the present situation by disrupting communal harmony, amity and peace in the state and thereto alienating people of the State from national mainstream.”

In its order, the Jammu bench had said, “The Director General of Police is directed to ensure that appropriate directions are issued to all the SSPs/SPs, SHOs of various police districts so that there is no sale of beef anywhere in the State of J&K and strict action is taken in accordance with the law against those who indulge in it.”

On the other hand, the Srinagar bench, on September 16, issued notice on a plea that had sought striking down of the RPC provision banning slaughter of bovine animals.

It was alleged in the plea before the Srinagar bench that the RPC provision was “ultra-vires” as the bar constituted an “unreasonable infringement” on fundamental rights of citizens.

The Srinagar bench had also said that the pendency of the plea before it will not operate “as a bar” if the state wants to do away with the provision.

“…We would like to make it clear that if the State or Legislature contemplates or takes steps for scrapping or amending the provisions as are under challenge, the pendency of this writ petition shall not operate as a bar,” it had said.

(PTI)

India rejects Sharif’s ‘peace initiative’ to demilitarise Kashmir

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India-reject-kashmir-demeterialised

United Nations: India has rejected Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s “peace initiative” saying that de-terrorising Pakistan is the answer, not demilitarising Kashmir.

After raising the Kashmir issue at the General Assembly on Wednesday, Sharif proposed a four-point peace initiative for India that embraces demilitarising Kashmir, renouncing the use or threat of use of force, withdrawal from Siachen Glacier and formalising ceasefire along the Line of Control.

In a rapid response, External Affairs Ministry Spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted, “To de-militarise Kashmir is not the answer, to de-terrorise Pakistan is.”

“Peace can be achieved through dialogue, not disengagement,” Nawaz said in his address to the General Assembly. “Cooperation, not confrontation, should define our relationship.”

But before proposing the peace initiative, Nawaz made the acrimonious reference to Kashmir, equating it with Palestinian and portraying it as a religious issue.

“Muslims are suffering across the world: Palestinians and Kashmiris oppressed by foreign occupation,” he said.

“The international community must redress these injustices against the Muslim people.”

Swarup replied in a Tweet, “Pak(istan) PM gets foreign occupation right, occupier wrong. We urge early vacation of Pak(istan) occupied Kashmir.”

Just after trying to internationalise Kashmir, Nawaz tried to couch the peace proposal as a bilateral move since India’s condition is that the Kashmir dispute is a bilateral one and there should be no outside involvement. However, it did included a request to increase the UN Millitary Observers Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP).

Although, Nawaz tried to strike a conciliatory note with his proposal and its phrasing, he insisted elsewhere in his speech on “consultations with Kashmiris, who are an integral part of the dispute.”

New Delhi considers Kashmir an integral part of India and any such move an interference in internal affairs and counterproductive to a dialogue. Recent attempts at holding bilateral talks have been sabotaged by Pakistan bringing in the Kashmir question or engaging Kashmiri separatists.

Sharif referred to the recent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and asserted, “Wisdom dictates that our immediate neighbour refrains from fomenting instability in Pakistan.”

He said that “the two countries should address and resolve the causes of tension and take all possible measures to avert further escalation” and for this he asserted he was making the peace initiative proposal.

These were the four points in his proposal:

– Pakistan and India formalise and respect the 2003 understanding for a complete ceasefire on the Line of Control in Kashmir with increased monitoring by the UNMOGIP

– Pakistan and India reaffirm that they will not resort to the use or the threat of use of force under any circumstances.

– Demilitarise Kashmir

– Unconditional mutual withdrawal from Siachen Glacier,

“An easing of threat perceptions through such peace efforts will make it possible for Pakistan and India to agree on a broad range of measures to address the peril posed by offensive and advanced weapons systems,” Sharif said.

However, beyond the international publicity that Nawaz hopes his announcement could generate for him, his initiative has internal contradictions.

As Swarup said in his tweet, demilitarising Kashmir would not be possible unless there was an end to terrorists backed by elements in the Pakistani government crossing over, which would be an unlikely development.

Similarly, the border tensions have been a result of cross-border terrorism.

Nawaz did not offer any credible solutions to terrorism directed against India, including a crackdown on anti-India terrorists or handing over to India those wanted for terror in India.

Swarup noted in a Tweet, “Pakistan’s instability arises from its breeding of terrorists. Blaming neighbors is not a solution.”

Nawaz tried to portray his country as “the primary victim of terrorism” and said, “We will fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, irrespective of who their sponsors are.” He referred to Operation Zarb-e-Azb, which, he said, “has made substantial progress in cleansing our country of all terrorists and will conclude only when our objective has been accomplished.”

On Monday, Afghanistan CEO Abdullah Abdullah, however, accused Pakistan on being a sanctuary for terrorists and of going back on its word to stop terrorism against his country.

Nawaz said Islamabad supported Security Council reforms. He did not make any direct mention of India’s quest for a permanent seat. But in a snide remark that can be interpreted as directed against India, he said what was wanted was “not a Council, which is an expanded club of the powerful and privileged.”

(IANS)

Infiltration bid foiled in J&K, two militants killed

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Srinagar: The Army on Friday foiled an infiltration bid along the Line of Control (LoC) in Gurez sector in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district, killing two militants.

“An infiltration bid has been foiled in Gurez. Two terrorists have been killed,” Defence Spokesman Lt Col N N Joshi said.

He said post midnight, the alert troops posted on guard duty along the LoC intercepted the militants while they were trying to sneak into the Valley from across the border.

“An encounter erupted and during the exchange of fire, two terrorists were killed,” Mr. Joshi said.

The spokesman said two AK-47 rifles have been recovered from the site of the encounter.

“The search operation is going on,” he said.

The identity of the militants has not been ascertained so far, the spokesman said.

(Agencies)

High Court bans sale of beef in Jammu and Kashmir

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beef-export

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has imposed a ban on sale of beef in the state.

The HC directive came on Wednesday but was widely reported in the media on Thursday.

A division bench of the J&K HC passed the order while hearing a public interest litigation against cow slaughter.

The court also directed the state DGP to instruct local police officials to ensure that the ban is strictly imposed.

The court has also ordered the police to take strict action against those who violate the ban.

(Agencies)

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