Month: April 2018

Bubble of celebration in a sea of mourning

Editor

Just as government forces were using an earthmover to search for bodies of three militants under the debris of burnt down houses they believed were killed during a long gun battle Wednesday, the militants appeared at Quimoh market on bikes performing stunts amid a jubilating crowd. All the three militants trapped inside a military cordon had managed to escape with the help of protestors who had thronged the encounter site. As the forces declared the operation over villagers rushed to the spot of the gun battle when locals started talking…

Read More

Four Civilians die, Two battling for life saving rebels in Kulgam

Editor

When the sound of a few gunshots came out of the noise of rains beating tin roofs of the Khudwani houses late on Tuesday evening, it residents, about to go to sleep, stood still as the shooting grew more steady and intense. Three Lashkar militants had found themselves under siege by the government forces with a top commander of the guerrilla outfit also trapped in a house in the Wani Mohalla locality, in Kulgam. The shooting ebbed a little as the night rolled on, and the forces closed off all…

Read More

Searches called off, no militant bodies recovered, rebels managed to escape

Editor

Government forces on Wednesday evening called off the search operation at the gunfight site in Khudwani area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district after no militant bodies were retrieved from the debris of the blasted houses. Earlier, forces said a search operation was launched to retrieve the militant bodies from the site of the firefight that broke out last night at Wani Mohalla. However, no militant bodies were recovered from the debris. Meanwhile, The two militants have managed to escape from the gunfight site in Khudwani area of district Kulgam. Local sources…

Read More

UN Secretary General says ready to talk to Pakistan, India officials on Kashmir Issue

Editor

After UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres indicated that he was ready to talk to senior officials from India and Pakistan on the situation in Kashmir and see how things can be improved on the ground, voices were raised in New Delhi addressing all stakeholders that the solution to the present crisis in Jammu and Kashmir lies in dialogue at the appropriate political level. “Only by winning the hearts and minds of the people can their faith in the political process be restored,” former Indian External Affairs and Finance Minister, former Secretary,…

Read More

Politics over Kathua Rape-Murder leads to tension across Jammu

Editor

The brutal rape and murder of an eight-year-old Bakerwal girl has polarised the normally peaceful town of Jammu, with the local Bar Association calling for a bandh against what it termed the “targeting of minority Dogras” while the state police lodged a case on Tuesday against lawyers who allegedly tried to prevent it from filing a charge sheet against the accused. The high-profile case has even divided the state’s polity, with at least two BJP ministers in the Mehbooba Mufti government questioning the role of the police. The victim, who…

Read More

Rain lashes valley for third day, snowfall in Sonamarg

Editor

Intermittent rainfall continued in the city here and in other districts of the Kashmir valley for the third consecutive day on Tuesday while Sonamarg resort received fresh snowfall. The downpour, which began on Sunday, has continued intermittently across the Valley and significantly brought down the soaring mercury which was causing the day temperature to rise by nearly eight to 10 degrees above normal. Srinagar received 29.5 mm rainfall during the first two days, and the downpour continued for the third day. Fresh snowfall draped central Kashmir’s Sonamarg resort, a meadow…

Read More

BJP not supporting bandh, wants severe punishment to culprits: Ashok Koul

Editor

The ruling BJP State General Secretary Ashok Koul Tuesday that the rightwing party has condemned the rape and murder of 8-year-old Kathua girl Asifa Bano and demanded severe punishment to the culprits. “Right from beginning, BJP condemned the incident and whosoever is involved in this heinous crime shall be punished under the law,” Kaul told reporters on sidelines of one day party workers convention at Dak Bungalow, Sopore which was attended by 30-35 party workers. He said the incident snowballed into a Hindu-Muslim case and a lot of confusion was…

Read More

Four Civilians, Armyman killed, 60 Civilains, 2 Troopers wounded during Kulgam Gunfight

Editor

The civilian death toll mounted to four after another youth injured in clashes near gunfight site in Khudwani area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district. The slain was identified as Aijaz Ahmad Palla, 30 from Bijbehara. Reports said Palla was injured in clashes near the site of gunfight in Wani mohalla area of Khudwani. Earlier, three civilians – identified as Sharjeel Ahmad Sheikh (28), Bilal Ahmad Tantray (16) of Hawoora Mishpora and Faisal Illahi (14) of Melhoora Shopian – were killed in clashes with the forces. A soldier has also been…

Read More

Kashmiris stand with Chenab valley brethren: Joint Resistance Leadership

Editor

Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) on Tuesday said Kashmiris stand with their Chenab valley brethren over the “harassment” meted to them at the hands of fanatical forces. In a joint statement issued by JRL comprising Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik said:“…whether it is the issue of justice for Asifa or any issue related to injustice or harassment of the people of Jammu, Chenab Valley, Rajouri and Poonch at the hands of fanatic elements who belong to a particular community.Kashmiri leadership and the people of Kashmir will always…

Read More

UN should play its part on Kashmir Issue, Pakistan PM tells secretary general

Editor

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi says UN should play its part in stopping “Indian atrocities” in Kashmir and accused New Delhi of “unprovoked ceasefire violations.” Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Tuesday met United Nations (UN) secretary general Antonio Guterres in China and urged the world body to play its part in stopping “Indian atrocities” in Kashmir and accused New Delhi of “unprovoked ceasefire violations”, which he warned can dangerously escalate the situation along the LoC. According to an official statement from the Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office, Abbasi…

Read More