Month: October 2017

Resistance Leadership rejects engagement with centre’s interlocutor

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In a statement, issued by the Joint Resistance Leadership, leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik, rejected any possibility of engaging in parleys with former Intelligence Bureau chief. Separatist Kashmiri leaders on Tuesday declared that they won’t entertain any talks with the Indian government’s interlocutor, Dineshwar Sharma, and called his appointment “a new tactic” by New Delhi. In a statement, issued by the Joint Resistance Leadership, leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik, rejected any possibility of engaging in parleys with former…

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Trade & Travel via Poonch-Rawalakot remains suspended for 112th day

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Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir have sought a meeting with officials of Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Thursday to discuss resumption of cross-LoC travel and trade via the Poonch-Rawalakot road, an official said on Monday. The cross-Line of Control trade and travel remained suspended for the 112th consecutive day on Monday between Jammu’s Chakan Da Bagh and Rawalakot in Pakistan. “We have requested PaK officials—via the government—for a meeting on November 2 to decide on resuming the cross-LoC travel and trade via the Poonch-Rawalakot road,” custodian of the cross-LoC trade (Poonch), Muhammad…

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Akhtar’s participation in BJP meet as proof north, south poles have merged: NC

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Opposition National Conference Monday expressed shock over the participation of PDP spokesperson and Works Minister Naeem Akhtar’s participation in BJP’s executive meet in Srinagar and demanded that the party come out with an explanation. NC Provincial President Nasir Aslam Wani said participation of PDP leader in a high level BJP meet was a clear sign that PDP and BJP had the same agenda in Jammu and Kashmir. “Executive body meetings are not part of governance decision making. These are policy making occasions for the party. Akhtar being part of this…

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China mulls 1,000 km tunnel to divert Brahmaputra waters to Xinjiang region

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China’s top leadership is considering digging a 1,000-km long tunnel, which if completed would be the world’s longest by a huge margin, to divert the waters of the Brahmaputra from Tibet to its dry Xinjiang region. The Brahmaputra, called the Yarlung Tsangpo in China, originates in Tibet and flows downstream into India’s northeast and sustains millions of people in its basin flowing into Bangladesh before meeting the Bay of Bengal. Once the tunnel is approved, it will most likely affect the water flow in the Brahmaputra, that could cause draughts…

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RSS is brainwashing groups of Kashmiri youth in Nagpur: Farooq Abdullah

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The National Conference parliamentarian Farooq Abdullah, who was reelected as party president accused RSS of taking groups of youngsters from far flung villages of Valley to Nagpur and brainwash and train them as their agents. Abdullah was addressing a delegate conference of the party here in Srinagar in which he was reelected as party president. “Youth are being taken to New Delhi from villages like Kupwara, and then sent to Nagpur and brainwashed and trained to become the agents of RSS. Beware of that and keep a check on any such…

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Removal of Article 370 only viable solution to Kashmir Issue: BJP

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Amid a raging debate over autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP’s state unit today said removal of Article 370, which grants special status to the state, was the only viable solution to the decades-old problem. “Removal of Article 370 and bringing Jammu and Kashmir on par with other states is the only viable solution to the issue,” BJP state spokesperson Prof. Virender Gupta said in a statement here. “This would be a befitting reply to separatists and Pakistan who are supporting and nourishing terrorism in the state and will…

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Durbar staff must keep homes secure, Police issues advisory

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With several Srinagar families moving to Jammu after the shifting of the Durbar, the J&K Police have issued an advisory to citizens not to leave their houses unattended as they may be used by anti-national elements. “It has come to notice that Durbar move employees and a good number of citizens from Hazratbal subdivision (in Srinagar) usually shift their families to Jammu and leave their houses unattended. This practice often offers a chance to miscreants and other offenders to trespass into these houses which result in burglary and also these…

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Water crisis across Kashmir as Jhelum level hits rock bottom

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Villages of Kupwara, Bandipora, Budgam districts most affected An unprecedented water crisis is unfolding in the Kashmir valley as a lengthy dry spell has led to a record low level of water in the Jhelum river, one of the main source of water supply in the region. The areas most affected by the crisis include north Kashmir’s Kupwara and Bandipora districts and central Kashmir’s Budgam district, where dozens of villages are without drinking water supply. In north Kashmir’s Sopore town, the water is being supplied to rural and urban areas…

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Hearing on Article 35A in Supreme Court deferred by twelve weeks

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The Supreme Court on Monday deferred the hearing on Article 35-A by twelve weeks. The Supreme Court was slated to hear a petition today seeking repeal of Article 35-A of the Constitution, which grants special state subject privileges to Jammu and Kashmir. The petition in the case has been filed by a Delhi-based NGO, We the Citizens, saying the state’s autonomous status granted by Article 35(A) and Article 370 of the Constitution discriminates against fellow citizens from the rest of India. On Sunday, Joint Resistance Leadership comprising Syed Ali Geelani,…

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Supreme Court reviews Article 35A, Key to J&K’s Special Status: 10 Points

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Jammu and Kashmir must lose its right to decide who qualifies as a permanent resident of the state and can own property there, says a case being heard by the Supreme Court today. The issue is a politically volatile and emotive one because it involves the special status that is provided to the state, which allows it autonomy and a degree of self-rule not given to others. The case is being heard by three judges including Chief Justice Dipak Mishra. Here is your 10-point cheat-sheet to this big story: Article…

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