Category: General News

General News

Protect state from further bloodshed : Mehbooba Mufti

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In her first public address since violent clashes broke out last Saturday killing 36 people, Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday sought people’s support in pulling the state out of a spiral of violence, saying the killings have overwhelmed her heart with sadness. Kashmir remained a simmering cauldron of protests on Wednesday with three more killed in fresh violence, taking the toll to 36. The CM promised to reach out to families who’ve lost their dear ones. “I am facing a challenging task, but I won’t let…

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Stone pelting doesn’t give India free pass to use lethal force: Human Rights Watch

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Stone throwing by Kashmir protesters does not give India free pass to use lethal force, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said. HRW also asked India to investigate the use of lethal force in Kashmir. In a statement issued here, HRW said Indian authorities should credibly and impartially investigate use of force by police during violent protests in Jammu and Kashmir that have killed over 30 people and injured hundreds. HRW said since the killing of Burhan Wani and two other Hizb-ul-Mujahedin militants on July 8, 2016, demonstrations had occurred in…

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Hartal / Strike call extended for two more days

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Hurriyat has extended the on going hartal call for two more days. The strike call given jointly by seperatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik has been extended till Friday. In a statement issued by Hurriyat Conference (M), on behalf of all parties people have been asked to continue strike on July 14 and 15 and also hold protests after Friday prayers against the killing spree that has claimed 35 lives so far. The statement also condemned the arrest of Geelani, Mirwaiz and Malik.

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Mehbooba Mufti repeating my mistakes; Omar Abdullah on Kashmir Unrest

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National Conference leader Omar Abdullah has said that J-K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti should have at least been on television appealing for calm in the Valley but she seems to have retreated into a shell at a time when she needed to be seen and heard. The cycle of violence that gripped the Valley in 2010 is a painful memory for former chief minister Omar Abdullah, but as he sees Kashmir erupt again, he finds his successor making the same “mistakes” he did. “Mehbooba Mufti has made the same mistake…

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Modi ‘unhappy’ over media coverage of terrorist Burhan Wani being portrayed as ‘Hero’

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Undoubtedly, the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani got immense media coverage. Now, it has been reported that PM Narendra Modi has expressed ‘unhappiness’ over the media coverage of violent protests in Kashmir following the killing of Burhan Wani, saying the Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist was portrayed as a ‘hero’. PM Modi said this on Tuesday at a high-level meeting to review the situation in Jammu and Kashmir after Wani’s killing in an encounter, according to a  Press Trust of India report. In the high-level meeting attended by top Union…

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Omar Abdullah accuses govt of staging drama to show normalcy

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For mer Chief Minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah Wednesday accused the government of staging a drama to show that situation was turning normal. Speaking to media after paying tributes to 1931 Martyrs at Naqashband Sahib shrine in Srinagar downtown Omar said that “if they had to bring civil people in police cars to show normalcy how can they restore the order”. “Shamelessness. People ferried in police buses to state function to convey normalcy has returned. When I came here,I was shocked to see civil people being brought here…

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Police will be answerable for excessive use of force, will seek accountability : Mehbooba

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According to the Home Ministry, Wani had around a dozen cases with serious charges against him, mostly under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Kashmir Tuesday and appealed for calm, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, in first public remarks following the protests and violence over the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, asked parents to dissuade their children from taking to the streets. She said security personnel and policemen “will be made answerable” for incidents where excessive force was used. Expressing…

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Pellets take a toll, 92 eye surgeries and counting

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Pellet guns have been regularly used to quell protests in Kashmir since 2010, when the state police introduced them as “non-lethal weapon”, their use has increased over the years. Eighteen-year-old Mohammad Yasin lies on a hospital bed, his vision smeared with a white haze. He is not sure if he will ever see properly again. All 72 beds in the ophthalmology ward of Srinagar’s SMHS hospital, where Yasin is recovering, are occupied — some by two patients. The patients are mostly young, many of them minors, including a 12-year-old girl.…

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Protests or no protests, forces to go full steam against terror

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Unfazed by violent protests in south Kashmir in the wake of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani ‘s killing, the security establishment will continue to go full-steam in its fight against terror. The encounter in Handwara and the foiling of an infiltration bid in Keran on Monday exhibit the security establishment’s resolve to deal firmly with those who pick up arms and indulge in violence. According to a top officer of the security establishment, protests or no protests, there would be no compromise on crushing terror with armed action. Stating that…

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Ban Ki-Moon United Nations chief concerned over Kashmir situation

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United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon is concerned over the tense situation in Kashmir following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, a spokesperson said on Monday. Stephane Dujarric told reporters the UN chief has noted with concern the situation unfolding in Kashmir. Dujarric strongly rejected remarks by a Pakistani journalist that the UN chief, who had earlier in the day addressed the press on the situation in South Sudan, has “brushed aside” the issue of Kashmir and is not sufficiently addressing it. “No one is denying that we…

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