General News Archives | Page 197 of 361

BJP to observe Accession Day in big way

October 26, 2017 Editor

As Kashmir-centric parties repeatedly question accession of J&K with the Union of India, the ruling BJP has decided to observe Accession Day in a big way. All party ministers have been directed by the state unit to mark their presence in the function which would be held in Jammu on Thursday. The BJP has reason to make the Accession Day function a grand event because party ministers have failed to convince its coalition partner to declare an official holiday on October 26 — the day when J&K acceded with the…

Appointment of interlocutor for Kashmir ‘Only For Publicity’: Congress

October 25, 2017 Editor

The Congress said Tuesday that it doubted the “intent” of the NDA government in resolving the Kashmir issue, and alleged that it appointed an interlocutor towards the fag end of its rule “only for publicity”. Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said the Congress and other opposition parties had asked the government to talk to all stakeholders to resolve the “political issue” in the valley through confidence-building measures rather than “hot pursuit”, but it “wasted” three-and-a-half years during which many precious lives were lost. “We are…

BJP determined to resolve Kashmir Issue : Dy CM Nirmal Singh

October 25, 2017 Editor

Deputy Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Nirmal Singh today said New Delhi was determined to find a solution to the Kashmir issue. The government would create a conducive atmosphere so that all stakeholders, including the Hurriyat, were involved in the dialogue process. “Our Home Minister has said all stakeholders can come. In our Agenda of Alliance, we have made it clear that the J&K Government will create an atmosphere where dialogue is possible. If there are grievances, the same should be put on the table with an open heart.…

I would like to talk to everyone across Kashmir: Dineshwar Sharma

October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 Editor

Hope we will together bring peace in Kashmir The clock has turned full circle for former IB chief Dineshwar Sharma, who was appointed the Government of India (GoI’s) special representative in Kashmir, 25 years after his first posting for the bureau in the Valley. It was May 1992. Militancy was at its peak and Sharma, then 36, arrived in Srinagar after completing a year of customary training at the Intelligence Bureau headquarters in New Delhi. The Kerala-cadre officer, who was posted as assistant director between 1992 to 1994, went on…

Kashmir Valley’s political class faces rising militant ire

October 24, 2017 Editor

Militants either lobbed grenades at residences of politicians or masked gunmen barged into houses and ransacked them and also threatened the inhabitants. Suspected militants attacked eight houses of political workers in south Kashmir in the past one week — from October 16-22 — with observers saying the sudden spike indicates the failure of security apparatus in the state. Though such attacks by insurgents on political workers, perceived to be “pro-india”, have been occurring sporadically in the Valley for a long time now, the current spate has caught attention because of…

Centre to hold sustained dialogue on Kashmir Issue: Rajnath Singh

October 23, 2017October 23, 2017 Editor

A sustained dialogue will be initiated by the government to find a solution to the Kashmir issue, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday. Addressing a hurriedly-convened press conference, Singh said former director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) Dineshwar Sharma would be the central government’s representative to initiate dialogue with all stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir. Sharma, a 1979-batch (retired) officer of the Indian Police Service, served as the IB director between December, 2014 and 2016. Sharma will decide whom he wants to hold talks with, Singh said when…

Blot on Taj Mahal can cast shadow on Kashmir

October 18, 2017 Editor

Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA Som Sangeet, who had described Taj Mahal as a “blot on Indian culture,” is unaware of the consequences his statement can have in Jammu and Kashmir. The state is already in throes of keen contest on the events and currents of history, which is at the heart of perpetuation of the blood-ridden conflict for the past three decades. And, its end is not in sight in the foreseeable future. Kashmiri Muslims are becoming more possessive of the names and monuments in the Valley and other parts…

Kashmiri Civil Society members meet Jammu counterparts to build consensus over defending JK’s Special Status

October 17, 2017 Editor

A group of lawyers, civil society members and religious scholars from Kashmir are holding meetings with their counterparts in Jammu to persuade them to make efforts to safeguard the special status of the state. According to a statement issued here, a spokesman said that the members of Jammu and Kashmir Civil Society Coordination Committee (JKCSCC) from Kashmir including Adv GN Saheen, Muzaffar Shah, Mufti Nasir-ul-Islam, Adv Mir Javed, Jogmohan Singh Raina and Adv Yasmeen are on visit to Jammu and have met people including Gulchain Singh Charak, members of displaced…

Rajnath Singh admitted facts, Kashmir has not integrated into India: Hurriyat (G)

October 16, 2017 Editor

Kashmir’s Hurriyat Conference (g) has stated that Home Minister Rajnath Singh had admitted the fact that Kashmir has not integrated into India. The statement issued to the media said “Singh’s assertion that Sardar Patel would have integrated Kashmir into India, had not Nehru stopped him is a fact and it means Kashmir is not part of India.” “It was converted into a dispute and taken to the UN where the people were given the right of self determination,” the statement said. “This is the promise that India has not kept…

Pellet guns, Jails, Braid cutting can’t restore peace in Valley: Bhim Singh

October 13, 2017 Editor

Chief Patron of Jammu Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) Bhim Singh Thursday said pellet guns, jails, braid cutting cannot restore peace in Jammu Kashmir. He appealed President Ramnath Kovind to act in accordance with the mandate of Constitution of India and special powers vested in the President in Article 370 that the President has constitutional mandate to amend or effect any change in any provision contained in Article 370 of the Indian constitution. Singh appealed President Kovind to invoke his authority to remove or declare proviso in Article 370 (3)…