In a first, Resistance Leaders call for end of ‘Bloodshed On All Sides In Valley’

They hailed Kashmiris for condemning the attack on the Amarnath yatris In a significant development, three top separatist leaders hailed Kashmiris for condemning killing of Amarnath yatris unequivocally. They also described that “bloodshed on all sides uncalled for.” “All bloodshed on all sides is uncalled for, unfortunate and painful and should stop and that can happen only when the reality of Kashmir is accepted and ways and means of resolving the dispute addressed by the Indian State”, the leaders said in a rare statement, which seems to be asking for…

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Jammu Shuts against attack on Amarnath pilgrims, Anger spills onto roads

Anger spilled onto roads as Jammu observed spontaneous shutdown against the terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims with protesters blocking highways at different places from Lakhanpur to Udhampur. The city observed a complete bandh on the call by the Jammu Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP), Congress, Chamber of Commerce and Industries (CCI), Jammu chapter, and transporters, which was supported by the Bar Association, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Team Jammu, All J&K Panchayat Conference (AJKPC), Bajrang Dal and other social and political organisations. Representatives of different organisations took out rallies in the city.…

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Water transport trial held on Jhelum to boost tourism

The trial of the water transport services was conducted today on the Jhelum river from the ghat near the GPO, Srinagar, to Fateh Kadal bridge. An official said for the trial run, two motor boats of Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation (JKTDC), and one motor-driven “shikara” were pressed into service. The service has been jointly launched by the JKTDC and the Department of Tourism, Kashmir, to promote water transport and heritage tourism. District Development Commissioner, Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Lone launched the service. He was accompanied by JKTDC Managing Director…

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Alert sounded after 6 men hijack vehicle in Udhampur

Close on the heels of the attack on Amarnath pilgrims in Anantnag, a high alert was sounded in the Jammu region after six youths allegedly hijacked a vehicle on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway late on Tuesday night. Official sources said the hijacking had sent the security agencies in a tizzy and efforts were being made to trace the vehicle. Sources in the police department said some unidentified persons had hijacked the vehicle in Udhampur, following which a red alert had been sounded in the Jammu region. “I was given a…

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Kashmiris do not need to prove their humanity, India needs to prove its own

Hafsa Kanjwal In her July 10 Post commentary, “Why a terrorist attack on Hindu pilgrims could change everything for Kashmir,” Indian journalist Barkha Dutt patronizingly let the people of Kashmir — who have been struggling for their right to self-determination for nearly 70 years — know that their “cause” has lost its “moral compass.” She referred to an attack on Hindu pilgrims, or yatris, during Kashmir’s annual Amarnath pilgrimage on Monday, which tragically killed seven pilgrims and injured 19. She claimed that “armed, jihadist terrorists” targeted innocent civilians. Pointing to…

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Amarnath Yatra attack shows system has failed Kashmir, its youth: Situation is the worst in nearly a decade

Monday’s attack on pilgrims of the Amarnath yatra is one more indicator of just how badly the situation in Kashmir has deteriorated. This did not snap out of the blue the moment militant commander Burhan Wani was killed a year ago. The process has progressed over the last nine years. It is easy to lose sight of the dimensions of the current threat to national security. Youth rage is very real. So is radicalisation, in both political and religious terms, among militants and teenagers. Pakistan’s involvement has increased. The Jamaat-e-Islami…

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Kashmir problem is Nehru-Gandhi family’s legacy: Smriti responds to Rahul’s attack

Union minister Smriti Irani hit out at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi for criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the attack on Amarnath pilgrims and politicizing the issue at a time when the country was “united against terrorism”. “Upon return from strategic and very well known holiday, Mr Gandhi has chosen to attack the Prime Minister, especially when nation stands united against terrorism,” Irani said on Wednesday. The BJP leader was referring to Rahul’s flurry of tweets earlier in the day, in which he claimed that PM Modi’s quest for…

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Kashmiris vow strike won’t smear Valley’s famed hospitality: Amarnath Yatra terror attack

It was 11 am on Tuesday at the Batangoo area in Khanabal of south Kashmir where an attack on the Amarnath yatris had occurred a night before. The area was buzzing with security forces. Online broadcasting vans of news channels were parked on the roadside. Many shops were shut in the area and journalists were sitting on the shop fronts, possibly waiting for their editors’ directions from newsrooms. Amid all this, traffic movement was normal. Everybody was aware of what had happened on Monday night. The local passengers were seen…

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Civil Society Group, Kashmir Traders demands GST rollback, threatens state-wide agitation

Jammu and Kashmir Coordination Committee – an umbrella or trade bodies and civil society groups – on Wednesday warned of intensifying agitation across the state if the government didn’t roll back the GST law within a week’s time. Besides GST rollout, the JKCC has demanded the withdrawal of presidential order on the tax law and declaring the Jammu and Kashmir as a “free economic zone (FEZ). “In the event of Government not acceding to our demands, within a week’s time, the JKCC will be forced to continue its agitation and…

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Modi’s policies created space for terrorists in Kashmir: Rahul Gandhi

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s quest for “short term political gain” has “created space for terrorists in Kashmir”, leading to incidents like the terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims on Monday, which left seven people dead.+ The Congress leader then tellingly used a formula, the kind PM Modi favours to describe things, to talk about the fallout of Modi’s BJP allying with the PDP in Kashmir to form the state government there. Office of RG ✔ @OfficeOfRG Modi’s policies have created space for…

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