Pampore Terror Attack; Lengthy siege and fidayeen-like tactic

Militants taking refuge in a building had a chance to escape, but they chose to take on security forces In the early hours of Sunday morning, a rattle of gunfire punctured a lengthy pause of silence at Sempora on the outskirts of Srinagar city. The shots fired by militants holed up in a building were distinct — they were single shots and made a sharp sound. The police and Army commandos fired a barrage of bullets amid thuds of grenade blasts. It is 7:15 am. The gunfight that began on…

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Modi to take call on govt formation

The pace of the government formation process has picked up in Jammu and Kashmir and the first major signs are likely to appear by Sunday. It is expected that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have seen the thrust areas and the time-line of the important clauses of agenda of alliance before Sunday to facilitate further movement in giving a long-awaited popular government in Jammu and Kashmir. This sensitive border state is without a political government since the death of chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7. Currently, it is…

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No change in Mehbooba’s stand on CBMs

Mehbooba Mufti is firm on her original stand that there can be no compromise on her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s commitment and conviction if she is to form the government. That has been her position since January 8, when BJP general secretary Ram Madhav had first raised the issue with her. Nothing has changed in her stance since, her party colleagues say. Her colleagues maintain that she is firm that she would form the government only if the confidence-building measures (CBMs) she has asked for are given to Jammu and…

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BJP, PDP hold first formal meeting on govt formation after Mufti’s death

Finally, Madhav & Mehbooba meet BJP, PDP hold first formal meeting on govt formation after Mufti’s death on Jan 7 In a bid to break the deadlock over government formation, Bharatiya Janata Party general secretary Ram Madhav met Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti at her Fairview residence here this evening. This was the first formal meeting at the highest level between the two parties on government formation after the death of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7. Madhav had last met Mehbooba on January 8 a day after the…

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Government formation to take time, says PDP

After weeks of tough-talk, PDP today adopted a reconciliatory tone, saying it has not demanded any confidence-building measures (CBMs) from its ally BJP even as it said government formation in Jammu and Kashmir will take “some time”. Senior PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Beigh asserted that the alliance with BJP is intact and there was no question of making any fresh demands to the coalition partner. “It (formation of the government) is being looked into. We don’t want alliance primarily for gaining the power. We want the alliance (government) to work…

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Valley tense after two civilians including girl killed in security forces firing

Tension has gripped Kashmir after two persons including a 22-year-girl were killed and a dozen others injured when security forces allegedly opened fire on protesters in Pulwama district in South Kashmir on Sunday following an encounter in which a local militant was killed. The separatists have called for Kashmir bandh on Monday while Mehbooba Mufti, who is tipped to take over as Chief Minister of the State, has asked security forces to maintain restraint while dealing with civilians. The residents of Lelhara village in Kakapora, Pulwama, mostly youth,  took to…

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JNU : SAR Geelani booked for sedition, Eight students barred from academic activities

Former Delhi University lecturer SAR Geelani has been booked for sedition in connection with an event at Press Club of India here, in which a group shouted slogans hailing Afzal Guru, who was hanged on February 9, 2013 in Delhi’s Tihar jail. “An FIR has been registered against Geelani and other unnamed persons under Sections 124A (sedition), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 149 (unlawful assembly) of IPC in connection with the event at the Press Club in which anti-India sloganeering took place,” DCP (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal said today. The action…

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Highways closed following heavy rains, snowfall

Traffic on the valley’s main highway that connects Srinagar and Jammu was suspended during the day due to landslides and heavy snowfall along the route Incessant snowfall and rains on Thursday led to the closure of the valley’s arterial Srinagar-Jammu National Highway and brought relief from a long spell of dry weather in Kashmir. Traffic on the valley’s main highway that connects Srinagar and Jammu was suspended during the day due to landslides and heavy snowfall along the route. “In view of rain or snowfall at various places on the…

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Curfew-like restrictions imposed in Srinagar to stem pro-freedom protests

The city authorities on Wednesday imposed curfew-like restrictions here, causing inconvenience to people. Policemen standing beside coils of concertina wire put across the road in Residency Road and Lal Chowk commercial hubs of Srinagar city refused passage to everyone, including media persons who had to reach their offices in Press Enclave on the Residency Road. “Not allowed,” a police constable told media persons who showed their identity cards to him in the Residency Road area. The restrictions were imposed in five police station areas of Srinagar city on Tuesday to…

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Move cautiously, don’t skip core agenda: RSS to BJP

The Sangh Parivar has suggested to the BJP leadership to move cautiously while deciding on government formation with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The much-publicised meeting between leaders of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the BJP at New Delhi this evening decided not to take any hasty decision on the crucial issue. The high-level meeting was held at the Pandit Deen Dayal Research Institute (DDRI), New Delhi, under the chairmanship of Krishan Gopal, RSS’s Sah-Srakaryavah, who coordinates between the BJP and the Sangh Parivar. Manmohan Vidhya, Akhil Bharatiya Parsar…

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