Year: 2020

Kashmir’s struggle did not start in 1947 and will neither end today

Editor

India’s decision to revoke Article 370 is just another chapter in Kashmir’s long history of imperial oppression. Tamoghna Halder On August 5, India’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government issued a surprise executive decree stripping away the autonomy that the state of Jammu and Kashmir was granted in exchange for joining the Indian union after independence in 1947. Since the decree, Indian authorities also imposed an unprecedented lockdown in the region, cutting off all communication lines, restricting movement and putting prominent Kashmiri politicians under house arrest. The government’s decision…

Read More

As farmer’s stir escalates, several border points in Delhi remain closed for traffic

Editor

“Ghazipur border is closed for traffic coming from Ghaziabad to Delhi due to farmers protests. People are advised to take alternate routes for coming to Delhi via Anand Vihar, DND, Chilla, Apsara and Bhopra borders,” the Delhi Traffic Police updated commuters through its Twitter handle. The Delhi Traffic Police said on Monday that multiple border points in the national capital such as Ghazipur, Singhu, Auchandi and others have been closed for traffic movement as the farmers’ agitation against the Centre’s agricultural reforms, which has been going on for 19 days,…

Read More

For restore bilateral ties China wants India to accept the new normal on LAC

Editor

While India wants China to restore status quo ante of April 2020, Beijing apparently feels that Modi government will come to terms with the new normal on LAC and revive ties in the coming months and willy-nilly accept the rise of the Middle Kingdom. This month, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has made repeated public statements stating that the only way for restoring frozen India-China ties is to untangle the four friction points in East Ladakh by disengaging and de-escalating the military situation along the 1597 km Line of Actual…

Read More

What is Kashmir Special Status and Articles 370, 35A?

Editor

Indian government abolishes decades-old laws that gave a measure of autonomy to the disputed Muslim-majority region. India has scrapped a law that grants special status to Indian-administered Kashmir amid an indefinite lockdown and massive troop deployment in the disputed region.Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah, a close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, told parliament on Monday that the president had signed a decree abolishing Article 370 of the constitution, stripping the significant autonomy Kashmir had enjoyed for seven decades.The move is expected to further inflame tensions in the Muslim-majority…

Read More

Abu Dhabi’s LuLu confirms food processing investment in J&K

Editor

The LuLu Group is setting up food processing and logistics centre in Jammu and Kashmir, as part of a wider strategy to build a pan-India presence. “The state has got immense potential and we are one of the leading importers of food and non-food products from India,” said Yussuf Ali M.A., Chairman. “Setting up of a new food processing and logistics center will further boost export of Kashmiri products.” Incidentally, Lulu was the first retailer to import the fabled Kashmiri apples across its 190 plus hypermarkets in the GCC and…

Read More

#LeaseRow: Gulmarg being leased out to the non-state subjects triggers protests

Editor

Normal life in this serene township and other surrounding villages has been paralyzed under a general shutdown coupled with protest demonstrations for the past three days. The residents of this tourist destination are up in arms against the government. Normal life in this serene township and other surrounding villages has been paralyzed under a general shutdown coupled with protest demonstrations for the past three days. Hundreds of people on Sunday took out a protest demonstration and staged a sit-in on the road to Gulmarg, blocking all the vehicular movement to…

Read More

Ravinder Raina, Kavinder Gupta among top leaders ‘Unauthorisingly’ residing in govt housing in J&K

Editor

An affidavit filed by Jammu and Kashmir’s estates’ department in the high court reveals that a number of politicians are residing in government accommodation beyond the period of allotment. More than 10 former ministers and ex-legislators of the BJP are among the politicians who are “unauthorisedly” residing in ministerial bungalows and quarters in Jammu and Kashmir. This revelation assumes more significance as it comes closes on the heels of the BJP’s concerted campaign targeting the leaders of regional parties in Kashmir for “benefitting” from the Roshini land law. The details…

Read More

Govt’s U-turn on Roshni Scheme aimed to shield BJP-RSS beneficiaries: NC

Editor

Says ‘Strike of land Jihad’, ‘Surgical Strike’ racket died its own death after BJP found itself in sticky situation National Conference (NC) on Monday called J&K governments review petition on Roshni Scheme a U-turn aimed to save its own face. After realizing that the major beneficiaries of the scheme were from BJP, RSS from Jammu, BJP wants a silent backtrack on its vitriol on Roshni Scheme, Party Spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar said in a statement issued to the news agency, He said far from harvesting anything with the propaganda on…

Read More

Syed Ali Shah Geelani: A life dedicated to Kashmir and its people

Editor

By Ruwa Shah It was a frosty February afternoon in the Turkish city of Kayseri. I had just finished my exams, and was hoping to have a rare moment of respite after submitting all my assignments. But before I could heave a sigh of relief and relax, I got a text: “Just heard about your grandfather. I am so sorry.” My grandfather, my “Aba”, is Syed Ali Shah Geelani, one of the most prominent figures in the Kashmiri resistance movement and the leader of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat. He is 91 years old,…

Read More

Tarigami moves SC challenging order allowing Non-Locals to Buy land in J&K

Editor

The application sought the apex court’s intervention and a stay on the October 26 order affecting a new land policy until the petitions challenging the changes to the region’s constitutional status are heard. Veteran CPI (Marxist) [CPI(M)] leader Mohammed Yusuf Tarigami has approached the Supreme Court challenging the Union home ministry order which allows people from across the country to buy land in Jammu and Kashmir, including that meant for agricultural purposes. According to LiveLaw, the application was moved in the writ petition which challenges the changes made to Jammu…

Read More