Curfew in Srinagar, Strike held in Kashmir

ISLAMABAD: Undeclared curfew has been imposed on the third phase of Indian parliamentary elections being held tomorrow, while people of occupied Kashmir are observing complete strike against holding of sham polls in occupied Kashmir.

According to Kashmir Media Service, the occupation authorities have put the Chairman of All Parties Hurriyet Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, senior Kashmiri Hurriyet leader, Syed Ali Gilani, APHC leaders, Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi and Nayeem Ahmad Khan under house arrest.

All the roads leading to Srinagar city have been blocked and the troops do not allow the people to enter the city.On the other hand, protest demonstrations continued in Sopore against the arrest of innocent Kashmiri youth by Indian troops.

In Srinagar Central Jail, a youth Shakil Ahmad Salora died due to sub-standard food and negligence by the jail ministration.

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Curfew in Srinagar, Strike held in Kashmir was first posted on April 29, 2009 at 4:12 pm.

1 militant killed in Mendhar Encounter

Mendhar: One militant was killed in an encounter with security forces in Mendhar in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday morning. According to sources, the encounter is still on.

The militant, who was killed in retaliatory fire, is yet to be identified. Two other militants escaped from a house in the area, but are still battling security forces.

Reports of the encounter came as Defence Minister A K Antony is visiting Rajouri sector in Jammu and Kashmir to review security for the Lok Sabha polls and an update on infiltration bids by militants from across the international border.

Antony is being accompanied by Defence Secretary Vijay Singh and Indian Army chief Deepak Kapoor.

The Defence Minister’’s visit to the border state comes in the wake of intelligence reports that over 400 militants were ready to cross into the state to target political leaders touring the state.

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1 militant killed in Mendhar Encounter was first posted on April 27, 2009 at 11:16 am.

Pakistan Still Aiding Kashmir Rebels: India

SRINAGAR: India’s army on Saturday accused Pakistani forces of helping Muslim guerrillas attempting to sneak into its disputed Kashmir region from the Pakistani side.

The Indian army produced a man they said was a Pakistani national who was among 120 people who had infiltrated into the Himalayan region this month, including around 30 militants, 40 porters and guides.

Most of the militants were killed in separate gun battles, Brigadier Gurmit Singh, a senior army officer, told a news conference in Srinagar, Kashmir’s summer capital.

“The weapons, communication equipment … the method of communication between infiltrating militants and the launch pad, it is quite evident that the armed forces across (Pakistan) do support them (militants),” Singh said.

He said large quantity of arms and ammunition, including 30 AK-47 rifles, 13,000 rounds and 245 grenades were recovered from a militant hideout near the Line of Control, a military control line that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

India consistently accuses Pakistan of aiding a violent separatist revolt in Muslim-majority Kashmir, where tens of thousands of people have been killed since a revolt against New Delhi’s rule broke out in 1989.

“I was told that there was oppression in Kashmir, I was motivated for joining the jihad and imparted training in Pakistan and sent here to join the other militants,” Moieen Ullah, the captured militant, said.

The two countries, who have fought two of their three wars over the disputed Kashmir region that both claim in full but rule only in part, launched a slow moving peace process in 2004.

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Pakistan Still Aiding Kashmir Rebels: India was first posted on April 26, 2009 at 10:02 am.

Hurriyat Conference urges people in Kashmir to shun election

SRINAGAR: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference, India-held Kashmir’s main separatist alliance on Friday appealed to the people of the region to boycott India’s general election, prompting authorities to place two separatist leaders under house arrest.

The decision by the alliance, which bands nearly a dozen political, social and separatist groups, comes after United Jihad Council (UJC) asked the separatist alliance to support their call to shun the poll.

UJC is an amalgam of 13 groups fighting Indian troops in Jammu and Kashmir, the country’s only Muslim-majority state.

“Elections are no substitute for the aspirations of the Kashmiri people and for the resolution of the dispute,” Hurriyat Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said in a statement.

India’s general election began last week, but voting in the Kashmir valley has been split into three phases starting from April 30.

The staggered voting is to allow thousands of security forces to move around the troubled region.

Besides Congress and its main opposition Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, the regional National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party are also contesting in the Himalayan region.

“Elections in the presence of 700,000 Indian troops is itself a dispute. I appeal to people to stay away from polls,” Farooq said.

Hardline separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani has already called for a boycott of the April-May election.

But another senior separatist leader, Sajjad Gani Lone, who walked out of Hurriyat in 2002, said this month that he would contest the poll and take his struggle to parliament in New Delhi.

On Friday morning Hurriyat’s Farooq and Geelani were placed under house arrest as they prepared to lead anti-poll rallies, police said.

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Hurriyat Conference urges people in Kashmir to shun election was first posted on April 24, 2009 at 9:24 pm.

Jammu and Kashmir Encounter Ends, 2 Militants killed

Srinagar: The encounter in Sopore in Jammu and Kashmir was finally come to an end with the killing of two militants on Friday.

An army personnel confirmed that the encounter has ended and there were two militants, who were shot dead, including a Lashkar militant.

The encounter broke out between militants hiding in a house at Tarzoo-Sopore and security forces in Baramulla district of north Kashmir early on Friday.

Acting on specific information that three militants were hiding in a house, security forces launched a search operation at Tarzoo-sopore, 55 kms from here, in the wee hours to flush them out.

However, as the search party zeroed in the specific house, the militants opened fire on it. The security forces retaliated and the exchange of gunfire is still on.

There is no report of any casualty of any security officials so far.

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Jammu and Kashmir Encounter Ends, 2 Militants killed was first posted on April 24, 2009 at 1:12 pm.

Crackdown Against IHK Hurriyet Leaders

SRINAGAR: Indian held Kashmir’s several Hurriyet leaders including Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Faruque have been arrested.

Kashmir media service said that several Hurriyet leaders including Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farugue, Yasin Malik, Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai, Naeem Ahmad Khan, Yasmin Raja and Farida Bahenji have been detained in their houses for averting their address after the Friday prayers, which was scheduled at different places in the Indian held Kashmir and protests demonstrations were to be staged against the Indian elections.

Hurriyet conference declaring the elections under Indian laws a farce appealed to the people to keep themselves away from these elections. All Parties Hurrriyet Conference has completely boycotted the underway two-phase elections in IHK keeping its tradition of the past 20 years.

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Crackdown Against IHK Hurriyet Leaders was first posted on April 24, 2009 at 12:47 pm.

2 Rebels killed in Kashmir

Kashmir : Two militants of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group and their female associate were killed in a shootout with security forces in India-administered Kashmir on Saturday, police said.

The combat took place near a village in the Doda district about 180 kilometres north-east of the state’s winter capital Jammu, after a joint army-police team started search operations.

“The two militants were active in the area and were behind many killings and abductions. They were eliminated in the gunbattle which lasted for an hour,” senior police official Parbhat Singh said.

A woman who was with the militants and was believed to be linked with the LeT was also killed.
According to Indian intelligence agencies, rebels are planning to increase the levels of violence in the region as the nationwide elections get underway.

The disputed Kashmir region is divided into two parts, one administered by India the other by Pakistan. The neighbours have fought two wars over the disputed region.

More than 45,000 people have died in violence since violent secessionist militant movement emerged in the 1980s.India has repeatedly accused Pakistan of aiding Kashmiri militants. Islamabad denies the charge, calling the insurgents freedom fighters.

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2 Rebels killed in Kashmir was first posted on April 18, 2009 at 4:41 pm.

Boycott For Basic Amenities In Many Poonch Villages: CEO

Jammu: Amidst clashes between supporters of rival political parties, firing by troops and boycott at some places, the polling remained by and large peaceful in Jammu Parliamentary constituency where voters sealed the fate of 21 contestants with an overall 49 per cent turn out.
According to the figures provided by the chief electoral officer, BR Sharma, the total vote percentage was 49 with Samba 47 per cent, Jammu 51 per cent, Rajouri 49 per cent and Poonch 47 per cent.
Addressing a press conference here, Sharma said that barring clashes between workers of two political parties in the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri, the overall polling remained peaceful with no untoward incident reported from Jammu and Samba.
Voters of Slotri, 82 Dodi-B and 72-Gali Pindi polling station in Poonch district boycotted the polls to register their protest against the state government. They protested the failure of the government to provide basic amenities to these areas and decided to boycott polling.
“None of the electors of these polling stations turned up to cast votes. These polling stations come under Mandi and Surankote areas of border district of Poonch,” the CEO said.
“People in the area were reportedly not happy with the government, which is said to be the reason of their protest. The team of civil administration was rushed to these areas and they tried to convince the people and later the voters of Slotri cast their votes but those of the remaining two stations did not relent,” he said.
Covering 20 Assembly segments spread over four border districts of Samba, Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch, the polling in both urban as well as rural areas was almost same where very less number of voter came out for voting till afternoon, but the poll percentage picked up in the evening.
Barring some incidents of violence, the overall polling remained peaceful in over 2,210 booths established for more than 1.72 lakh voters in the constituency, Sharma said.
50 PRISONERS CAST VOTE
UNI adds: Not only the oldies and the first timers exercised their franchise but 50 prisoners also cast their votes through ballot papers in District Jail Amphalla, sources said.
“There are around 650 inmates inside Jammu Jail but under the law, only 50 of them were found eligible to vote,” official sources told UNI.
Sources said under trials from four districts falling in the constituency including Samba, Rajouri, Poonch and Jammu locked up in the jail, took part in electoral process under Section 12 (c) of the Act as the papers were delivered to them 10 days prior to the polling date.

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Boycott For Basic Amenities In Many Poonch Villages: CEO was first posted on April 17, 2009 at 5:23 pm.

Moderate Hurriyat May Take Part in Polls in Kashmir

Srinagar: The moderate faction of the Hurriyat conference has said that it will not use the word boycott in the ongoing parliamentary polls in the state.

A decision to this effect was taken despite the fact that its hardline political faction has chosen to call for the poll boycott and even expressed resolve to conduct an anti-election campaign.

The decision was reached after a three day marathon meeting at the faction’’s Rajbagh headquarters in Srinagar.

“Kashmir is a disputed territory and to hold sham elections in the state is a dubious act which will not affect the status of the dispute,” the Hurriyat Conference said in a statement issued to the press.

“Polls have proven futile in the past and will prove so again,” the statement added.

Thursday’s statement only repeats the clichéd Hurriyat stance. “Election were never the issue with us. They make no sense in the absence of the settlement of the larger Kashmir conflict. Our position is that elections over the past six decades have resolved nothing. Kashmir problem as it existed at the time of partition remains the same. This election similarly will make no difference,” the statement says further.

However, the decision today has been taken in the absence of the chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq who is in New Delhi for his medical treatment.

The omission of the boycott call is likely to create a further divide between hawks and doves and further splinter separatist leadership.

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Moderate Hurriyat May Take Part in Polls in Kashmir was first posted on April 16, 2009 at 6:24 pm.

No Traces of Taliban in Kashmir, Assures Indian Army Chief

There are no traces of the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir, Indian Army chief General Deepak Kapoor said on Tuesday and added that the force was prepared to check the surge in infiltration in the run-up to the elections.

“We have had no traces of Taliban. There are other elements like LeT (Lashkar-e-Taiba) and the JeM (Jaish-e-Mohammed),” he told reporters on the sidelines of an international seminar, responding to reports of involvement of certain Taliban elements in the infiltration in the valley.

“We had already foreseen all this (infiltration bids) happening and were quite well prepared. That is why our troops are there on the LoC (Line of Control). We have put a three-tier defence system in place … And we have been able to check infiltration,” Kapoor said.

With the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections only two days away, there has been an increase in the cross border infiltration bids in the Kashmir Valley.

“During the run-up to the elections we had expected that there would be certain amount of calibrations from the other side. We will be able to beat the situation and the Lok Sabha elections will be as peaceful as the assembly elections (in Jammu and Kashmir),” Kapoor added.

The army chief also said that there were reports of women being trained for infiltration but there was no confirmation yet.

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No Traces of Taliban in Kashmir, Assures Indian Army Chief was first posted on April 14, 2009 at 5:13 pm.

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