The former chief minister also said there is no policy to restore UT’s economy with rising unemployment and inflation. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti hit out at the Central government on Monday over the economy of the Union territory and the recent dismissal of government employees. She said abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution that granted special status to the erstwhile state seemed to have been carried out to rob Jammu & Kashmir of its resources. “It seems the only…
Read MoreAuthor: Editor
Rains bring relief from scorching heat in J&K, Cloudburst triggers flash flood in Ganderbal
After reeling from days of scorching heat, moderate to heavy rains last night brought some relief to the people of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. News agency GNS quoted Director Meteorological Department, Sonam Lotus, saying that rains occurred on expected lines and more were in store for both Kashmir and Jammu regions. “As expected very heavy shower occurred at many places of plains of Jammu whereas moderate shower (has been) reported at many places of Kashmir and hilly area of Jammu,” he said, adding, “Today, the weather will remain overcast…
Read MoreDismissal of govt staffers ‘Criminal’: Mehbooba Mufti
Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday questioned the dismissal of 11 government staffers from service on charges of support to terror outfits. Mufti termed the development as “criminal” and “a punishment to the people of Kashmir”. She said the government continued to disempower locals. “The Government of India continues disempowering people of Jammu and Kashmir in the garb of pseudo nationalism by trampling upon the Constitution that ought to be upheld. The abrupt dismissal of 11 government employees on flimsy grounds is criminal. All policy…
Read MoreAbandoning Darbar Move; Why? Why Not?
Haroon Reshi Taking important decisions regarding Jammu and Kashmir in a hurried manner has become a new norm since New Delhi bifurcated the state into two Union Territories (UTs) and revoked its internal autonomy on August 5, 2019. Since then a range of political and administrative decisions was taken by just issuing circulars or statements either from Home Ministry in Delhi or Lieutenant Governor’s (LG) office in J&K. On June 20, LG Manoj Sinha, in a public address announced the ending of Jammu & Kashmir’s 149-year-old ritual of ‘Darbar Move’…
Read MoreSuicide: A nightmarish trend
Kulgam youth commits suicide, Budgam boy ends his life, Kupwara boy kills himself, 16 year old consumes poison, 35 year old hangs himself, boy jumps into river and ends his life. 18 year old boy from Baramulla ends his life. Woman commits suicide by jumping into Jhelum. These are the headlines flooding every news channel and social media. Shahid Shabeer Malik Apart from COVID-19, a new epidemic in the form of suicide has erupted in Kashmir. From the past few weeks, there has been a sudden rise in the number of…
Read MorePDP in Trouble over ED Summons, Notices to Leaders to vacate Govt Housing
With ED summons to Mehbooba Mufti’s mother over financial irregularities and eviction orders to PDP leaders living in official housing, the party is caught in a bind. The troubles for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president and former Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) chief minister Mehbooba Mufti are far from over with the J&K administration asking a young PDP leader to vacate his official accommodation in the capital Srinagar. A former legislator from south Kashmir, Aijaz Ahmad Mir, was asked on Wednesday by the J&K’s estates department to vacate his accommodation…
Read MoreIs Kashmir becoming a new combat zone of global powers?
By Kemal Pasha As the deadline for the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan looms, there is news of reshuffling of some U.S. military bases in the Middle East, speeding up the American administration’s efforts to repair its democratic values at home, and abroad. For years, the U.S. has been exporting its own style of democracy around the world, and unfortunately, that has lost its real meaning at home. Henry Farrell writes both U.S. President Joe Biden and U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson “agreed to protect democracy and open societies”…
Read More‘Conversion Row’ won’t back down, ‘Will fight to get my wife back’; Muslim Husband reiterates
Shahid Nazir Bhatt, 29, has been accused of forcefully converting a Sikh woman. But he claims she converted to Islam and married her of her free will. As Shahid Nazir Bhatt walked out of jail on 2 July, all he wanted was to start a new life with his wife, his love of six years — Manmeet Kaur. He rushed home, expecting to see her, but as he switched on his phone on the way, it was flooded with photographs of her wedding with another man, a Sikh, like her…
Read MoreOIC Chief meets India’s envoy in Saudi Arabia, offers mediation on Kashmir
The last such engagement between India and OIC took place in 2019 when the then Indian EAM Sushma Swaraj was invited as the “Guest of honor” at the OIC meet. In a rare development, India’s envoy to Saudi Arabia Dr. Ausaf Sayeed, and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen held a meeting on Monday (July 5). The meeting, which is being described as a “courtesy visit” in a release by OIC, took place at its headquarters in Jeddah. According to the OIC release, during the meeting, Secretary-General…
Read MoreResolve Kashmir issue to end the cycle of killing: Mirwaiz Umar Farooq
Hurriyat leader flags geopolitical changes in the region to call for early solution Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Thursday called for a resolution to the Kashmir problem to bring an end to the cycle of killings. Meanwhile, a spontaneous shutdown was observed in parts of the Kashmir valley on the fifth death anniversary of Hizbul Mujahideen ‘commander’ Burhan Wani. “The recent rise in killings of Kashmiris in J&K is a grim reminder of the need to resolve the Kashmir conflict urgently and prevent the region from getting consumed by…
Read More

