Category: General News

General News

Tariq Karra to defend ‘Article 35A’ in apex court

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At a time when mainstream parties and separatist leaders are busy playing the blame game over the erosion of the special constitutional status of J&K within the Union of India, senior Congress leader Tariq Hameed Karra filed a plea in the Supreme Court to defend Article 35A. The Supreme Court accepted the application seeking Karra as a private party in the case of Article 35A of Indian Constitution, which empowers the J&K legislature to define permanent residents of the state. “I have filed the application today before the registry of…

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Right to privacy as fundamental right declares Supreme Court

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‘Life and personal liberty are inalienable rights’ In a landmark verdict, the right to privacy was Thursday declared a fundamental right under the Constitution by the Supreme Court, which said “privacy is the constitutional core of human dignity”. The judgement, which will have a bearing on the lives of all Indians, said that “the right to privacy is protected as an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 and as a part of the freedoms guaranteed by Part III of the Constitution.” The top…

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Change of demography; A Myth or Reality?

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Kashmir is turning away from its centuries–old diversity to preserve the Muslim majority at all costs and to rebuff the “designs of the Hindutva forces” to render the community into a minority. This time around a petition challenging Article 35A that grants exclusive rights and privileges to permanent residents of the state has been reduced to Kashmiri Muslims’ identity versus Hindus of the country to make it a religio-political issue. Right from the posh locality of Hyderpora where separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani lives to the VVIP Gupkar Road…

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Unlike Valley, Jammu region silently awaits SC verdict on Article 35A

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Even as separatists as well as mainstream parties of the Kashmir valley have announced ‘mass movement’ to safeguard Article 35A at any cost, Jammu is silently waiting for the apex court’s verdict on this provision of the Constitution. A Delhi-based NGO along with some individuals have challenged the constitutional validity of this Article in the Supreme Court. Although a majority of the population in Jammu is against what they called ‘discriminatory’ Article, people in the region prefer remaining calm to repose their faith in the court. Locals are confident that…

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US asks India and Pakistan to engage in talks over Kashmir to reduce tensions

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The US has asked India and Pakistan to continue to engage in direct talks aimed at reducing tensions between the two countries. “I think one of the things that we would do is ask or encourage India and Pakistan to sit down together and engage in direct dialogue that is aimed at reducing tensions between both of those countries,” State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said. She was responding to a question on the statement made by the Secretary of State Rex Tillerson a day earlier in which he sought some…

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Farooq Abdullah calls for ‘United Fight’ to protect Article 35A

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National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday reiterated that all state political parties should get united for protection of Article 35-A, cautioning that it would be “devastating” for the state if the constitutional provision is scrapped. “The scrapping of Article 35A will lead to a storm which will create devastation with each passing day,” he said, addressing party workers from Kulgam, Beerwah and Dooru at his residence here. “The time demands that people of J&K along with the mainstream parties should set aside their differences and get united to defend…

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Pakistan rejects US criticism, calls for settling Kashmir Issue

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Pakistan has rejected the US’ accusation that it harbours terrorists and said the Kashmir issue is the “primary obstacle” to peace in the region. Pakistan on Wednesday rejected US President Donald Trump’s criticism of the country for harbouring terrorists and said the Kashmir issue is the “primary obstacle” to peace and stability in the region. While unveiling his new policy for Afghanistan on Monday, Trump signalled a toughening of the US position on Pakistan for sheltering terror groups. He also spoke of working more closely with India, which he called…

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Govt to shut transit camps, move Pandit staff to flats

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The state government has decided to shut the transit camps for displaced Kashmiri Pandit employees in the Valley in phases after concerns were expressed by security agencies over their vulnerability to mob attacks. During the 2016 unrest, these temporary camps at Haal (Pulwama), Nutnusa (Kupwara) and Vessu (Anantnag) had come under intense attacks of mobs following the killing of Hizb militant commander Burhan Wani. This forced 2,000 employees, posted in different districts of the Valley, to shift back to Jammu. A majority of the Pandit youth who had returned to…

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Supreme Court says dialogue not possible in J&K unless violence stops

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No meaningful dialogue is possible in Jammu and Kashmir unless violence stops in the strife-torn Valley, the Supreme Court said on Monday. “Talks with whom? No talk can take place unless the violence stops,” a bench of Chief Justice JS Khehar and Justice DY Chandrachud said. The court was hearing the appeal of the Bar Association Executive Member against the 22 September order of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court order. The high court had rejected the bar body’s plea seeking a ban on the use of pellet guns on…

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Geelani seeks ‘Insaniyat, Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriat’ to resolve Kashmir Issue

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Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has sought “insaniyat”, Kashmiriyat” and “Jamhooriat” to resolve the Kashmir dispute — ideas he derided when then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee propagated them in 2003. “We want India to exhibit insaniyat (humanity), Kashmiriyat (composite secular, eclectic Kashmiri culture) and jamhuriat (democracy). Nothing else,” the ailing octogenarian Hurriyat Chairman said, talking to his supporters in a videographed address from a hospital here. The nearly 2.30-minute video clip, recorded apparently on Sunday, comes amid the NIA swooping on Kashmiri separatist leaders, including Geelani’s two…

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