Xi Jinping gave marathon speech for 3.5 hours

As Chinese leader Xi Jinping delivered his three-plus-hour speech at the Communist Party congress, delegates ranging from men in suits to military officers and former presidents dutifully turned every page as they read and listened to his words. On the internet, government bureaus peppered social media with their favourite phrases from Xi’s speech, while photos circulated of children watching Wednesday’s congress in classrooms. The carefully orchestrated address was in keeping with the cult of personality that state media have crafted around the Chinese leader, who is expected to consolidate his…

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Mob protesting braid-chopping attacks army two hurt as forces open fire

Residents of a village in Pahalgam area of Anantnag district staged a protest after they caught an alleged braid chopper Two people suffered bullet injuries after security forces opened fire on protesters who pelted stones at them in Pahalgam area of Anantnag district on Wednesday, a senior police officer told Kashmir Post. “There were protests in the area against allegations of “braid chopping” and army personnel were passing through the area. Protesters pelted stones at them and they opened fire in retaliation. Two persons suffered bullet injuries but they are…

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Robbing Kashmir’s Green Gold

As citizens we too have responsibility not to violate the scenic beauty of our forests I don’t think it is judicious to blame Gulmarg-Sonamarg development authorities or the administration alone but we must look beyond the government authorities as we being citizens are equally responsible for the deterioration of Gulmarg, Sonamarg and Baba-Reshi tourists sites. These sites have been made dumping places for heaps of garbage scattered throughout these places which welcome visitors instead of the scenic natural beauty of Kashmir. As a conscious common citizen, I would never blame…

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Srinagar continues to reel under braid chopping fear

A knock at the door early in the morning makes Asiya Farash, a house maker, suspicious. Since the mysterious braid choppers cut her neighbour’s braids, she suspects everyone who passes by her house at Batamaloo here. The repeated knocks increase her suspicion and she yells, ‘who is at the door’. And Abdul Samad, the milkman replies, ‘Dood wala’, and Asiya takes a sigh of relief and opens the door. “She is not the only women who is reluctant to open the gate. Wherever I go these days to sell milk,…

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Jhelum water level reaches record low of six decades

The Jhelum registered a new low in its recorded history as the water level dropped 0.65 feet below the zero point on Tuesday, making it the lowest drop in the past six decades. The water level of minus 0.65 feet is the “lowest gauge ever recorded at the Sangam site,” said officials of the Irrigation and Flood Control (IFC) Department. The depth was recorded at 9 am and immediately announced by the department as the lowest-ever. The department has been maintaining the daily record of the river’s water level since…

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Blot on Taj Mahal can cast shadow on Kashmir

Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA Som Sangeet, who had described Taj Mahal as a “blot on Indian culture,” is unaware of the consequences his statement can have in Jammu and Kashmir. The state is already in throes of keen contest on the events and currents of history, which is at the heart of perpetuation of the blood-ridden conflict for the past three decades. And, its end is not in sight in the foreseeable future. Kashmiri Muslims are becoming more possessive of the names and monuments in the Valley and other parts…

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HC grants govt 4 week time to file response in Batwara liquor shop case

Jammu and Kashmir High Court (HC) Tuesday directed State government to file a counter affidavit against a liquor shop. An application was filed by advocate Mian Abdul Qayoom against a liquor shop running at Batwara, Sonwar. The division bench comprising Chief Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed and Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey treated the application as petition and allotted four week time to State Counsel Advocate BA Dar to file a response. Advocate Qayoom mentioned in the application that the liquor shop running at Batwara has many social implications. The application reads,…

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Separate Jammu state need of hour: Balwant Singh Mankotia

Former MLA and National Panthers Party (NPP) president Balwant Singh Mankotia reiterated that the demand for a separate Jammu state was need of the hour to end political inequality with the region. He said the residents of Jammu remain neglected in every field due to lack of political empowerment. Addressing the Tiranga rally organised at Tirlokpur, Gho Manhasan, Padrod of Marh constituency of Jammu district, Mankotia said the movement started for a separate Jammu state and Tiranga rallies were getting huge support from the masses. Continuous discrimination in employment, development…

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Police act faster than light in other cases, why braid-cutting still a mystery: Yasin Malik

Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Muhammad Yasin Malik Tuesday questioned the police for not cracking the braid cutting cases, stating that ‘police act faster than light in cases of arresting masked stone pelters, pro-freedom leaders and foiling peaceful protests.’ Addressing a gathering at Chrar-e-Sharief on the Urs of revered Sufi saint Sheikh Noor Ud Din Wali (RA), Malik said Kashmir’s women were under the grip of fear for the past two months due to braid cutting incidents. “We as a society are living in continued fear and apprehension but…

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Kashmiri kids prefer to play with toy guns

The two-decade-long violence in Kashmir has impacted the psyche of children so much that toy guns have emerged as their favourite plaything. Most of the parents say their children, especially the boys, just want to play with toy guns. So when they go to shops they choose from various toy guns, like machine guns, music guns, water guns, and more. “Our children have not seen childhood or enjoyed it. They have spent it in fear and trauma due to the bloodshed,” says Madiha, a mother of three, who lives in…

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