Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein UN human rights chief calls for inquiry panel on Kashmir

UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein has called for setting up an inquiry commission for a comprehensive investigation of the human rights situation in Kashmir. Zeid, who opened the 38th session of the UN Human Rights Council on Monday with a global update on human rights concerns, said he had sought to engage with India and Pakistan over the past two years regarding the situation in Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control. However, both India and Pakistan refused to give his office “unconditional…

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Jammu & Kashmir: One State, Two States of mind

Wary of rising unease in its support base in Jammu and other parts of the country, BJP sought to refurbish its ‘Hindutva’ credentials by snapping ties with ally PDP to counter the perception that it had compromised its ideological commitment to unifying Jammu & Kashmir with the mainland. The alliance with PDP, seen to pursue a ‘soft separatism’ political line, was always at odds with the BJP’s ‘nationalist’ stance and its advocacy of scrapping Article 370 and amending laws like Article 35A that accord special privileges to state residents. More…

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Five reasons why saffron party finally dismantle the untenable alliance

The only legitimate question that can be asked of a moribund alliance lying in a coma at the intensive care unit is this: What motivated the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to pull the life support plug now? There are five reasons why the BJP was finally compelled to dismantle the untenable alliance. 1. Differences over extension of non-initiation of combat operations The BJP, under pressure from Peoples Development Party (PDP), had half-heartedly agreed to it as part of coalition compulsion but it eventually came to a conclusion it may have to pay a steep…

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#HorseTrading: ‘Whatever does ex-J&K deputy CM Gupta mean?’wonders Omar Abdullah

Former BJP deputy chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Kavinder Gupta made an intriguing statement today, the operative part of which was “we are working on something & people will get to know about it”. Gupta was talking about a new government or the lack thereof in Jammu and Kashmir. His party, the BJP, pulled the plug on the coalition government it was in with the PDP in the troubled state. To opposition leader Omar Abdullah, Gupta’s statement indicated that the BJP was going to attempt to “horse-trade for government…

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Under Governor’s rule Kashmir Valley returns to tough security policy

A Union minister said the government will adopt a more aggressive approach not only inside Kashmir but also along the Line of Control and the International Border as well. Under governor’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir, New Delhi will embark on a hardline security-centric policy with the scaling up of counter-insurgency operations, especially in the four districts of South Kashmir — Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag and Pulwama — that have become the hotbed of militancy in the last two years, officials familiar with the plan said. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)…

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BJP timed exit so J&K doesn’t go to polls before Lok Sabha election

The timing of BJP’s decision to pull the trigger on its alliance with PDP was determined by a desire to ensure that the J&K assembly election was not scheduled before the Lok Sabha polls due in early 2019. With Jammu & Kashmir having a provision for governor’s rule for six months, the BJP leadership is keen to let this period run as close to the end of 2018 as possible. The calculation was that if the six months ended in December, it would be too close to the Lok Sabha…

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President approves governor’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir

President Ram Nath Kovind today approved the imposition of governor’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir, a day after the BJP pulled out of its alliance with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Jammu and Kashmir. Following the President’s approval, governor NN Vohra will be presiding over the state. He’s doing do for the fourth time, having overseen governor’s rule in 2008, 2015 and 2016. Vohra was set to complete his second term in a few days, butis now set to continue in Raj Bhavan at least till the conclusion of…

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Locals youth ‘Used as Human Shields’ during protest in Pampore

Residents of Samboora, Pampore, have accused army of harassment a day after a video showed soldiers using a few youth as human shields against a group of youth with whom they had been clashing in the same area. One of the youths told Kashmir Post on the condition of anonymity (as he apprehends reprisals) that they were playing cricket when the soldiers grabbed them by their collars and dragged them to the road, where people had been protesting. Local residents had prevented the forces from carrying out searches in the…

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BJP cuts ties with PDP: Mehbooba Mufti was lonely at the top, stays lonely at the bottom

Mehbooba Mufti had the chance to repair the damage after her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, died while in office, but she took centre stage, and swiftly moved from being a soft separatist to being what many in Kashmir called an ultranationalist. Driving through the picturesque countryside in South Kashmir, where she was campaigning for the 2014 assembly elections, Mehbooba Mufti was clear about one thing. “There is no question of allying with the BJP. We have nothing in common,’’ she told me as she hopped in and out of the…

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A reluctant BJP & PDP alliance that wasn’t meant to be

Mehbooba Mufti was in her office in the Srinagar Civil Secretariat on Tuesday afternoon when news flashed that the BJP had ended the alliance with the PDP; also marking the sudden and surprising end to the 26-month rule of J&K’s first woman Chief Minister. An official at the Civil Secretariat said the CM was shocked and asked the officials to confirm the news. The alliance was a razor edge walk for both parties, which have opposing geneses, different vote banks, rivalling ideologies and no common ground. The PDP, a party…

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