Category: Kashmir

Kashmir

As UN demands details on Civilian killings in Kashmir, India stops engagement on topic

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UN experts have asked for clarification on 76 cases of torture and killings of civilians in the last 29 years. Three special rapporteurs of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) have written to India asking for details on steps taken to punish or provide justice to victims and their next of kin in 76 cases of torture and arbitrary killing in Jammu and Kashmir since 1990. The letter to the Indian government, dated March 18, is written by the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Agnes Callamard,…

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5 Rebels, 2 Civilians, 2 Soldiers killed across south Kashmir

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Five rebels, two civilians and two soldiers were killed in separate gunfights in south Kashmir’s Pulwama and Shopian districts on Thursday, police said. Pulwama gunfight A police official said that three Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) rebels, an army soldier and a civilian were killed in a pre-dawn gunfight near Pulwama town. Two soldiers and a civilian were also wounded during the gun battle. The police official identified slain rebels as Naseer Ahmad Pandith of Karimabad, Pulwama, Umar Ahmad Mir of Barthipora, Shopian and Khalid, a JeM commander, of Pakistan. The deceased civilian…

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Shiv Sena extends ‘Hand of Friendship’ to Kashmir Valley

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A lesser-known party in the Valley, the Shiv Sena Balasaheb Thackeray, on Thursday extended a ‘hand of friendship’ to the people as part of efforts to expand footprints in Kashmir. “We have come with a message of friendship for the people of Kashmir… we want that the regional parties should strengthen brotherhood between Jammu and Kashmir as a wedge has been created between the two regions,” said Manish Sahni, general secretary of the Shiv Sena Balasaheb Thackeray, J&K unit, while addressing a press conference here. Nine other party members, mostly…

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The first quarter of 2019 witnessed 162 killings in Kashmir: Report

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Ever since militancy erupted in the late 1980s, this is the first time more security forces personnel lost their lives than militants in Kashmir. During the first three months of 2019 at least 162 people including civilians, security forces and militants were killed in various incidents of violence in Jammu and Kashmir, according to a report released by local-rights group, Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS). With 586 killings recorded, 2018 was the deadliest year for the state in a decade. In comparison to the first three months of…

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BJP grappling with identity crisis across Kashmir Valley

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The Bharatiya Janata Party’s election campaign in the Valley has yet again brought to the fore the identity crisis it faces in the Muslim-dominated region. Like before, BJP leaders, during their election campaign in the Valley, avoided raking up the abrogation of Article 370, which has been used as a poll plank by the party in rallies outside Kashmir. The party’s local candidates also put up a ‘Muslim face’ during campaigning. Even as the BJP poll din was somewhat visible in south Kashmir, the campaigning was low key in north…

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Rain lashes parts of Kashmir, Sonmarg, Gurez receives fresh snowfall

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Gurez and some other upper reaches, including tourist resort of Sonmarg, received fresh snowfall on Thursday while rain lashed other parts of Kashmir valley, resulting in considerable dip in the maximum temperature. A Met department spokesperson told a news agency fairly widespread rain and thundershowers would occur in Kashmir valley during the next 48 hours under the influence of a Western Disturbance (WD), which is active in the region. Much to the surprise, Gurez sector of Kashmir’s Bandipora district, received light to moderate snow since this afternoon, resulting in dip…

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Highway Ban, Landslides, Mismanagement cause shortage of essentials across Valley

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The frequent shutdown of the 300-km Srinagar-Jammu highway — a crucial and the only route for the supply of essential commodities into the Kashmir valley — has led to a fresh shortage of goods in the region. Residents said the closure of the mountainous highway had led to a shortage of livestock and vegetables. It has even led to the cancellation of weddings as the marriage season begins in the region after the winter. A leading business body in the region, Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry, had said on…

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Alliance with BJP, Poor Infrastructure may cost PDP on home turf

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Of the six Assembly segments in Anantnag district going to polls in the first leg of the three-phased Lok Sabha elections on Tuesday, Bijbehara, the hometown of the Muftis, may not bring the desired results for them this time. The situation has arisen for the party for the first time when it completes two decades of its existence, thanks to the neglect in developing the area and its “unholy alliance” with the BJP. The parliamentary elections have pitted the PDP against its traditional friends and rivals, the Congress and National…

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To make electoral gains BJP using Kashmir as scapegoat: Mehbooba Mufti

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Hours after India suspended trade across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir saying the route was being misused by Pakistan-based elements to smuggle weapons, narcotics and fake currency, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday claimed that the BJP was using Kashmir as a scapegoat to make electoral gains. Taking to Twitter, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said, “Using Kashmir as a scapegoat to claw its way back to power won’t help BJP. It’s an excuse to worsen ties with Pak (Pakistan) despite…

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Nuner pledge ‘Not To Vote’ at militant’s funeral, Budgam votes to safeguard Articles 370, 35A

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The residents of this village in Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir Thursday stayed away from polling booths after pledging to boycott voting at the funeral of a local militant, who was killed in an encounter with security forces earlier this month. Rahil Rashid Sheikh was killed in Imamsahib area of Shopian district on April 6.Sheikh, a resident of Nuner village of central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district – 32 kms from the state’s summer capital Srinagar – was pursuing M Tech from a college in Chandigarh. He joined the militant ranks…

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