Category: General News

General News

Er Rashid not the only JK MLA to toe pro-militant line; PDP, NC lawmakers also on list

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Even as Independent MLA from Jammu and Kashmir Engineer Rashid has been summoned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for toeing a pro-militant line, he is not the only one from the political fraternity to do that. Lawmakers from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and National Conference (NC) have also been hailing militants or their ideology. On 26 September, Minister of Public Works, Naeem Akhtar, condoled the demise of the former head of the department, Government Medical College Srinagar, Mehraj-u-Din Munshi, terming his death as a great loss. Munshi was…

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Er Rashid to be questioned in Terror Funding Case by NIA

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Sheikh Abdul Rashid’s name emerged during the interrogation of businessman Zahoor Watali, who was arrested by the agency for allegedly providing money to terror groups and separatists in Kashmir An independent lawmaker from Jammu and Kashmir has been summoned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with a case related to the funding of terror activities in the Valley. Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, has been called for questioning on October 3, making him the first mainstream politician to be summoned in the case, officials said.…

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Need to change J&K discourse: Jitendra Singh

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There is a need to “change the discourse” around Jammu and Kashmir as there is no such thing as the Kashmir issue, Union Minister Jitendra Singh has said, stressing that the only “point of debate” is retrieving Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The Minister of State in the PMO said this after paying pictorial homage to the martyrs of Jammu and Kashmir Police and slain Army officer Lt Ummer Fayaz here yesterday. Lt Fayaz’s Facebook page, letters during his Army training days as well as the photographs of slain J&K Police officers…

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Right time for talks as peace returning to state: Mehbooba Mufti

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“The shoots of peace have started sprouting. They have to be watered and fertilized, and I am sure that the fruits of peace will follow,” Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said. Shoots of peace are “sprouting” in Jammu and Kashmir and the government is now working towards ensuring that the people in the state can be uplifted with dignity, state Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has said. In an interview to news agency PTI last night, the 58-year-old chief minister welcomed recent attempts by the Centre and the ruling party to reach…

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BJP looking to Sangh for final call on Kashmir talks

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To initiate dialogue after RSS meet at Bhopal in mid-October Contrary to the statement of BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav, the Centre will take the Sangh Parivar on board before initiating any meaningful dialogue on Kashmir. Instead of taking any hasty decision on talks, the Centre will look into all aspects before taking any step in the matter. Ram Madhav, while addressing media persons at Srinagar on September 21, had announced that the Centre was ready for a dialogue with separatists without any pre-conditions. “We are ready to talk…

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Initiate dialogue with stakeholders in J&K: Concerned Citizens Group

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The Concerned Citizens Group (CCG) today asked New Delhi to initiate dialogue with stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir. “We have read with much hope the statements of the Prime Minister, the Home minister and the BJP leadership on a positive change in policy towards Kashmir’s citizens, as have many Kashmiris,” Sushobha Barve coordinator, Concerned Citizens Group said in a statement. “While looking forward to a concrete follow up, we would like to suggest that in order to operationalise the well-intentioned statements that have so eloquently been made, it is now…

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‘Jammu & Kashmir seeks attention’ posters appear in Geneva

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Posters demanding freedom for Jammu and Kashmir and Indian states Tripura, Nagaland, and Manipur have appeared on metro buses and trams in Geneva while the 36th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is underway in the city. The Pakistan Television Network (PTV) official Twitter account shared this information on Monday night with images. It has yet to be ascertained who put up the posters. Earlier in September, Ambassador Farukh Amil, the permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN had written to the Swiss authorities to bring attention…

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Involve everyone in Kashmir talks: Mirwaiz to Center

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Kashmiri separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Monday that said he favoured unconditional dialogue with the government of India but said that the best chance of success would be if it followed the Vajpayee government’s doctrine. Farooq, who is Kashmir’s chief cleric, noted that in the Vajpayee formula “all parties were involved,” referring to the simultaneous communication that the Kashmiri separatist leaders were allowed to have with New Delhi as well as with Islamabad and counterparts in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. “We want a mechanism to be prepared for talks where everyone…

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Amit Shah, Rajnath, Madhav discuss Kashmir post BJP meet

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BJP president Amit Shah, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and some other party leaders including Ram Madhav and Ram Lal closeted Monday for an hour-long meeting, where they are believed to have discussed issues related to Jammu and Kashmir among others, sources said. They met at the home minister’s residence after the BJP executive meeting here and is said to have reviewed the political situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the sources said. While details of the meeting were not immediately available, according to sources the leaders are believed to have…

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Dialogue offer must evoke positive response: Sartaj Madni

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Welcoming the unconditional offer of dialogue from the Centre on Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party vice-president Sartaj Madni said it should evoke positive response from all those interested in ending the stalemate. The Peoples Democratic Party leader was referring to BJP general secretary Ram Madhav’s statement on his arrival here. The PDPleader said people of Jammu and Kashmir had been the worst sufferers of uncertainty and instability arising out of contentious issues and confrontation. “Now is the time that reconciliatory gestures from New Delhi are not put to any doubt and…

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