Day: May 29, 2019

14 Hours by road or Rs 14000 Jammu-Srinagar flight, Repeated landslides on national highway continue to haunt commute

Editor

Frequent landslides at vulnerable spots on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway have forced the Centre to send a high-level team from the Ministry of Home Affairs, which visited the affected areas of Ramban today. As uncertainty looms over the 270-km stretch following regular blockades, airfares between the two state capitals have spiralled, with tickets selling as high as Rs 14,000 for a one-way trip. Sources say the blockade of the highway on a regular basis is creating hurdles in the smooth movement of security forces in the Valley. With the annual…

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Is BJP’s second term more disastrous for Kashmir?

Editor

The provocative statements made by top BJP leaders pertaining to the abolition of Article 35-A and Article 370, along with the usual rants of following a more hard and muscular policy in the state has led to the rise of anxieties within the state. With the return to power of BJP under Narendra Modi with a much bigger mandate as compared to 2014, many new anxieties are arising in the country, especially due to what was witnessed during the last 5 years under Modi and also during the campaigning for…

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Don’t fall prey to BJP’s false promises, will surpass 1996 tally in Assembly elections: Devender Rana

Editor

National Conference (NC) provincial president and former MLA, Devender Singh Rana on Tuesday asked people of Jammu not to fall prey to “false” election promises of Bharatiya Janata Party. Hitting out at BJP’s state chief Ravinder Raina for his assertion that his party would get over 50 seats in the forthcoming Assembly elections and new Chief Minister would be from Jammu, Rana said, “BJP has a history of fooling people using such emotional statements during elections.” “In 2014 state Assembly elections, the BJP promised people that if the party was…

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Medical report rules out rape in infamous Sumbal rape case

Editor

The medical examination conducted by doctors at SKIMS medical college, Bemina has ruled out rape of minor girl of Sumbal area in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district earlier this month. In contrary, Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Srinagar result of the underwear, seized by police from the accused, has substantiated that DNA profile of accused matched with the 3-year-old victim. The case is sub-judice and the special court of District and session judge Bandipora would hear the case FIR No. 81 /2019 of police station Sumbal on June 1 against the accused…

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What does Narendra Modi’s return to power mean for India’s Muslims?

Editor

After a landslide victory, India’s PM reaches out to Muslims, who fear they will continue to be a target of Hindu hardliners. Days after returning to power with a resounding mandate, Prime Minister Narendra Modi struck a conciliatory tone by saying his party needed to win the trust of Muslims – the country’s largest minority.  Modi led his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to a landslide win on the back of a divisive campaign that ostensibly targeted Muslims.  The Indian prime minister said that the opposition parties “deceived minorities” by not addressing their…

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The decision on Article 35A soon: Jugal Kishore Sharma

Editor

Elected to the Lok Sabha for the second time, Jugal Kishore Sharma, while talking to us, said besides taking forward the development tasks, the party’s priority would be to abrogate Article 35A as was included in the ‘Sankalp Patr’. After getting second term to represent J&K in the Lok Sabha, what are your priorities?I have been always a representative of the people of my constituency in the LS. My priorities are the same as were after 2014 to extend maximum Central beneficial schemes which alleviate problems of the constituency, including…

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