RDX, other explosives recovered
Shakeel Ansari among 5 ultras escape
in Ramkote gun-battle

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Nov 15: Close on the heels of Chilla Danga encounter in Samba, the presence of five militants was last night spotted at Dunga forests in Ramkot area on the border of Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur districts.

Though the militants managed to escape after a fierce gun-battle with the police and security forces, a huge quantity of weaponry was recovered from the scene of encounter. Army has also been called out in the area to trace the absconding militants.

DIG Jammu-Kathua Range Dr S P Vaid told EXCELSIOR that a joint police party of Jammu and Kathua police launched a massive search operation in Dunga forests in Ramkot area of Kathua district, bordering Udhampur and Jammu districts after developing an information about the presence of some top militants in the area.

The militants after successfully crossing the International Border had managed to reach Ramkot area for their onward journey to upper reaches of Udhampur and Doda districts. A police party led by SSP Kathua Mr R R Swain cordoned off the area and launched searches for the hiding militants late last night.

Dr Vaid said the militants were spotted moving in the forest area and were challenged. Both the sides opened firing on each other which continued intermittently throughout the last night. In the morning, army was also called out from Brigade Headquarters in Samba to assist police in the searches.

However, militants managed to escape taking advantage of forest cover leaving behind a large quantity of arms and explosives, which were seized by the police. The recovery include 10 kgs RDX, 10 electronic detonators, 12 rifle grenades, six programme timer devices, three pencil timer devices, three remote control devices, 102 rounds of AK rifles, 30 rounds of pistol and a large quantity of eatables and personal belongings of the militants.

Police said militants were stated to be atleast five in number. They include a top most activist of Hizbul Mujahideen, Shakeel Ansari, brother of another top militant Farooq Ansari. Shakeel Ansari was taking four foreign mercenaries, probably Pakistanis, with him to upper areas of Doda for subversive activities. Shakeel Ansari was on the hit list of police and army for the past quite sometime and was evading arrest.

Army personnel, who reached the spot from Samba, have cordoned off the forest areas along Ramkot and were hunting the militants. The exit routes of the militants were also being sealed to ensure that they don’t manage to escape.

The encounter at Ramkot, hitherto a totally peaceful area, came few days after a similar encounter between militants and Village Defence Committee (VDC) members at Chilla Danga in Samba in which one militant was killed and two others had escaped.

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Report submitted to HC
Hotels,huts constructed at Patnitop without permission

Excelsior Legal Correspondent

JAMMU, Nov 15: The three-member Advocate’s Commission probing the illegal constructions raised at Patnitop tourist resort, has submitted its report to the High Court with the findings that some constructions have been raised by various hoteliers and retired employees without the permission of Patnitop Development Authority (PDA).

Meanwhile, Mr Justice T S Doabia of the State High Court has directed the Patnitop Development Authority to see if some construction work is presently going on, then notices would be issued to the concerned parties not to proceed further with the construction activities.

Mr Justice Doabia further directed that PDA will examine the report submitted by the Commission of three Advocates appointed by the High Court in its earlier interim order .

" The petitioner shall furnish the complete addresses of such persons having raised the construction and they shall stand arrayed as respondents in this case", the Justice held.

This court direction came up in a writ petition filed by Mr Y P Talwar in which court had earlier passed an interim order after appointing three Advocates as Commission members to have a fact finding at Patnitop, where the alleged construction work was taken up by some persons. These Advocates are B S Slathia, S K Anand and K S Johal.

In the report, the Commission has stated that some constructions have been raised at Patnitop after PDA was constituted and these constructions have been raised partly with the permission and partly outside the scope of permission granted by the Authority.

According to the report submitted by the Commission, some hotels including Hotel Subash Palace, Hotel Shiva International ,Hotel Green Top, Hotel building of M/s Jaspreet Kour and construction work taken up by Mrs Shakuntla Thakur were raised without the permission. Similarly construction raised by Mr Shammi, a local shopkeeper was without permission. One Vijay Kumar and Kuku Gupta had also raised the construction work without permission.

The part of construction raised by Hotel Somsom, Hotel Vardhan and Hotel Maharaja Resort were also raised without any permission, the Commission report said. Similarly , the owners of Hotel Surya had converted the residential construction into a hotel. Some individuals— Shakti Shah, Sham Sundar, Kuku, Mr Mukesh ,Mr Badyal, Mohinder Singh and Swaroop Singh had also raised a part of the construction without the permission. The owners of Hotel Dogra Residency and Restaurants and Hotel Kassal Inn were also falling in the same category. Mr Akbar Shah and Mr Anwar Shah had raised their respectively buildings without permission and partly without permission, the report said.

The construction raised by Late Mazhar Ali Shah’s son was partly without permission and private huts of seven persons including Mr Qureshi, a retired SE, Mr Suri, Executive Engineer, Mr S K Puri, retired MD Housing Board, Mr K K Abrol, retired ETO, Mr Sagar Chand, SSP, Mr B D Mal Sharma and a damaged hut of Mr K L Sethi were also raised in violation.

The Court ordered that a copy of this order would also be served on the private respondents. This case will come up for hearing on November 18.

Senior Advocate Pramodh Kohli appeared for the petitioner, while’s Mr S S Nanda represented PDA.

TADA Court transfers six cases of JKLF activists to Srinagar

Excelsior Legal Correspondent

JAMMU, Nov 15: Presiding Officer Designated Court under Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention (TADA) Act Jammu, Mir Abdul Hamid today ordered transfer of six cases to Additional TADA Court Srinagar in which Mohd Yaseen Malik, supremo of banned Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and seven others are facing trial here since 1992.

The other activists include Mohd Rafiq, Wajahat Bashir, Javed Zargar, Mansoor Ahmad Sofi, Mohd Rafiq Sofi, Showkat Bakshi and Mehraj-ud-Din .

The transfer order was passed on an application filed by the accused militants, owing allegiance to JKLF, on the grounds that the petitioners and prosecution witness are also from Srinagar and for speedy trial in the interest of justice, the transfer of these case to Srinagar Court, was necessary.

The Court asked the prosecution to file the objections in these applications. Special Public Prosecutor had filed a common objection on June 30, 1999 with the request that the objection be treated in all these cases. The SSP in his objections had also resisted the transfer on the grounds that the security scenario at Srinagar was not conducive for the accused in this case to face trial smoothly, and there was no occasion at present to transfer the trial of these six cases to Additional Court at Srinagar.

While ordering the transfer, Mr Hamid observed that these cases were pending here since 1992 and had remained possibly unheard in absence of the witnesses. Further, all of them belong to Srinagar and some of them were facing trial in other cases at Srinagar, it was pointed out.

The Judge observed that the situation in Valley , as far as the functioning of the courts was concerned, has improved and the present matter can also be taken up there. Accused Yasin Malik, Mohd Rafiq and Wajahat Bashir who are on bail, have been directed through their counsels to appear before the trial court on December 6, 1999.

The Court further directed the Additional Presiding Officer Srinagar to summon the other accused namely Showkat Bakshi, Mansoor Sofi, Javed Zargar and Mehraj-ud-Din from the concerned jails where they are presently lodged, in order to face the trial.

These accused are already facing trial and CBI had investigated the cases against them for the kidnaping of Dr Rubiyya Sayeed, daughter of former Union Home Minister Mufti Mohd Sayeed, killing of Air Force personnel, kidnaping and killing of General Manager HMT Srinagar, Mr Khera, killing of Director Doordarshan Lassa Koul and kidnaping and killing of Kashmir University Vice Chancellor Mushir-ul-Haq. Yasin Malik has been granted bail in the CBI cases on medical grounds.

Advocate Yogesh Bakshi appeared for the petitioners/accused while’s Subash Bhagat, Chief Prosecuting Officer appeared for the State.

Baramulla troops torture civilian to death
3 militants, jawan killed in Kupwara

Excelsior Special Correspondent

SRINAGAR, Nov 15: Security forces have eliminated three militants while losing a soldier of Rashtriya Rifles (RR) in Kupwara district but, in Baramulla district, a 40-year-old civilian has been tortured to death. Meanwhile, militants have launched an unsuccessful rocket attack on a security forces camp at Qazigund while as intermittent exchange of shelling continued between Indian and Pakistani troops in Boniyar area of Uri sector today.

Official sources told EXCELSIOR that on the basis of a specific information, troops of RR 32 Bn and SOG Kupwara conducted an operation at Bran-Nar Dangarpora, Kalaroos, in Kupwara district today. According to the tip-off, six militants of Al-Badr were present at the houses of Aziz Ganai, Jamal Ganai and Sonaullah Ganai, sons of Sattar Ganai. During the search operation, fierce exchange of fire took place between the militants and security forces in which two local militants got killed. Two AK-56 rifles, 500 gm of explosive, 2 hand grenades and 6 rifle grenades were claimed to have been recovered from the site of encounter.

One of the militants killed was identified as the outfit’s "platoon commander" Mohammad Sultan Ganai alias Shahbaz Afghani S/o Habibullah Ganai, resident of Ban Nar. As regards the another, people identified him as the outfit’s "company commander", Mohammad Iqbal Malik alias Irshad S/o contracor Mohammad Sultan Malik of Goos, whose arms consignment had been seized by police near Patnitop when the truck carrying the same to New Delhi had met with an accident last month.

Sources said that another encounter took place between troops of RR 18 Bn and militants at Dooraswami village of Lolab in Kupwara district today. One unidentified militant, believed to be a Pakistani commander of Lashkar-e-Toiba, got killed. Troops too suffered damage as one soldier got killed and another sustained injuries. He was rushed to hospital for treatment. One AK-56 rifle was claimed to have been recovered from the spot.

Meanwhile, a 40-year-old civilian, namely Mohammad Ramzan Malla son of Mohammad Assadullah Malla resident of Doodibugh, Baramulla, succumbed to torture and injuries at a Srinagar hospital today. He had been picked up by troops of RR 29 Bn, camping at Shimlaran, three days back and subjected to intensive third degree torture. Almost dead, he was handed over to his family members on Sunday who found him critically tortured and rushed him to Srinagar. He breathed his last today. As the dead body reached back to Baramulla, people alleged that Malla had been tortured to death in Army’s custody. They demanded police should register a murder case.

Sources at Baramulla confirmed to EXCELSIOR that Police Station Baramulla had registered a case of death in suspicious circumstances’ under Section 174 RPC. Official sources confirmed that during post mortem,multiple torture marks and burn marks had been observed on the dead body.

Militants had planted an IED at Tulmulla, Ganderbal, which was detected and destroyed by bomb disposal squad today.

During last night, militants fired a rocket towards the camp of a road opening party of security forces at Qazigund, on National Highway, which exploded in air and failed to cause any damage.

Meanwhile, Indian and Pakistani troops continued exchange of artillery shelling intermittently in Boniyar area of Uri sector and Keran area of Kupwara district. However, there were no reports of any damage.

A police bulletin claimed that security forces apprehended 6 militants at Sutaharan, Arizal, in Upper Budgam and recovered from them 4 AK rifles and 12 hand grenades.

Tragedy averted in Hiranagar
3 powerful explosive devices defused

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Nov 15: A major tragedy was averted in village Chandre Chak of Hiranagar tehsil of Kathua district today when security forces defused a consignment of explosive devices, detected by a civilian.

According to official sources, a civilian identified as Des Raj noticed some mysterious objects lying in a field where he had gone to ease himself at Chandre Chak in the early hours of this morning. Des Raj became doubtful and gave a message at a nearby army picket.

Army and BSF officials besides local police rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area. The movement of civilians was restricted in the fields, the sources said, adding security personnel successfully defused all the explosive devices, dumped by the suspected saboteurs in the fields.

Splinters showed that there were atleast three powerful explosive devices in the pack, which militants had left for picking them up at an opportune time. The militants couldn’t take the explosive devices to their destination due to stepped-up night patrolling by the security forces and police, the sources said.

After defusing the explosive devices, security personnel assisted by the local police launched a search operation in Chandre Chak and adjoining villages to apprehend the saboteurs responsible for smuggling the explosive device to this side of the border from Pakistan. However, no arrest has been made so far.

This was second recovery of explosives consignment in the border areas during the last few days. A number of explosive devices were seized in the previous recovery, which was made from Korotona area of RS Pura sector.

VC concedes remaining demands
College students suspend stir,

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Nov 15: After 18 days of deadlock, agitating students of city colleges today suspended their agitation and decided to resume their classes from Tuesday. Decision to suspend agitation was taken following meeting of the representative of All Colleges Coordination Committee (ACCC) with Vice-Chancellor of Jammu University, Prof R R Sharma.

In the meeting which lasted for more than two hours, Vice-Chancellor has shown full sympathy with the demands of the college students and held fruitful discussion with students.

Responding to the demand of streamlining examination system of the University, Vice Chancellor has assured the students that a high power Examination Reforms Committee, comprising some representatives of the students, would be constituted to look into the complaints of the students. Committee, if necessary, would submit its recommendations to the University authorities to streamline the examination system.

On the most controversial issue regarding continuation of the Supplementary System of examination, both ACCC and University Authorities have decided to hold a seminar in the first week of the December on this subject. Prominent academicians, teachers and representatives of students community would participate in the seminar.

Consensus which will emerge from the discussion in the seminar will be submitted to the Academic Council of the Jammu University. Academic Council then will refer the same to University Council for its final approval. University Council, the highest decision making body, if convinced would take final decision on the matter.

Though the students were demanding immediate relief regarding Supplementary examination, University authorities expressed their helplessness.

Talking to EXCELSIOR, Prof Zahur-ud-Din, Registrar of Jammu University said that it was decided in the meeting to hold seminar on Supplementary examination system between December 10 to 12. He further said the deliberations of the seminar would be sent to the different decision making bodies of the University.

Rajesh Vidharthi, Radha Sharma, Mithu Mandal, Paramjeet Kour, Ruhi Mahajan, Sangeeta Chowdhary, Meenakshi Chowdhary, Parminder Singh, Raj Gopal, Ravinder Singh, Neeraj Sharma, Varinder Chib, Bani Lal Thakur and Zorawar Singh represented the students while Prof Zahur-ud-Din, Registrar, Mr P S Sahi, Controller of Examination and Prof N A Ganai assisted the Vice-Chancellor.

Later, Rajesh Vidharthi, convenor of ACCC, spearheading the agitation, has said that they have decided to suspend their stir. He further said that students have decided to adopt new modes to lodge protest. Instead of boycotting classes, students today were seen wearing black badges.

It is worthwhile to mention here that during their meeting with agitating students on November 14, Minister of Higher Education, Mr Abdul Qayoom and Minister of Industries and Commerce, Mr Bodh Raj Bali have agreed to concede four demands including improvement of infrastructure, and hotel accommodation and stopping of mid-session transfers of the teachers in colleges.

Besides referring 327 posts of college lecturers to the Public Service Commission, Ministers had also assured to take up the issue of the power cut with Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah.

Sharif not yet arrested

ISLAMABAD, Nov 15: Pakistan’s ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is yet to be formally arrested on charges of treason and kidnapping, police today told an anti-terrorist court in Karachi which remanded four of his co-accused to three day’s police custody.

In the first official statement on the present status of Sharif, the Investigating Officer (IO) of the case told anti-terrorist court judge Rehmat Hussain Jafri that the deposed Premier was yet to be formally arrested by the police, official APP news agency said.

The IO gave no details about when the authorities planned to produce Sharif in the court, it said.

While earlier media reports quoting official sources had claimed that Sharif had been flown to Karachi and handed over to police to stand trial, special public prosecutor Feroz Mahmood Bhatti said Sharif had not been arrested and was still in preventive custody of the army near Islamabad.

He is likely to be arrested within a day or two, Bhatti informed the special anti-terrorist court as Sharif’s four co-accused, who appeared shaken, were committed to police remand till November 18.

The four — Sharif’s former adviser on Sindh affairs Syed Ghaus Ali Shah, former chairman of national carrier PIA Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former Director General of Civil Aviation Aminullah Choudhry and Sindh’s Inspector General of Police Rana Maqbool — who together with Sharif are accused of conspiracy to murder, kidnapping and attempting to hijack a plane, when asked by the judge if they had been tortured, said no, we are fine.

Even though all the co-accused pleaded not guilty to the charges, the anti-terrorist court accepted the request of the prosecutor for enhanced police remand. Prosecutor Bhatti sought police remand to carry our further investigations saying that the case was of sensitive nature and pertained to conspiracy against the state.

Former Advocate General of Sindh Iqbal Raad, who appeared jointly for all the four accused, opposed their continued detention saying that the prosecution did not have even an iota of evidence even after keeping them in illegal custody of more than a month.

All the four accused sought permission to meet their families and defence counsels, on which the judge is yet to rule.

The IO informed the court that 10 other witnesses are to be examined in the case and the police had notices issued to them.

Shah, Sharif’s former adviser on Sindh, told reporters outside the court: These allegations are wrong.

It is a pack of lie, said Abbasi. There was no conspiracy... We are innocent.

The case was initiated on the basis of an FIR filed by military authorities accusing Sharif and others of a criminal conspiracy to kill Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf and attempting to hijack a plane carrying him from Colombo to Islamabad on October 12. (PTI)

Civilian injured in encounters
3 militants gunned down in Rajouri, Mahore

Excelsior Correspondent

RAJOURI, Nov 5: During relentless seek and destroy operations and crackdown on militants by security forces three hardcore foreign militants were killed today in Rajouri and Mahore area.

On a specific information about presence of six militants in a house in Gamir Muglan, 4 km south west of Thanamandi in Rajouri district, Army lanuched operation and searched the target house. The owner of the house, Mohammed Akbar son of Sahab Din confessed the presence of militants and said three of them have left the location and other three have taken shelter in a neighbouring house.

When he was asked to indicate the target house, he accompanied, and as he indicated the house with his hand, militants fired injuring Mohammad Akbar. He was immediately evacuated by Army to district Rajouri hospital and his condition in stated to be stable.

Militants fled from the area but troops chased them and after an hour and a half long fire fight two militants were shot dead. Troops recovered two AK rifles from the slain militants. During firing, the dhok in which third militant was holed up caught fire and possibly one more militant is trapped in the dhok.

Slain militants have been identified as Abu Mansoor and Abu Baran, both foreign mercenaries from Laskar-e-Toiba outfit. One army personnel also received a minor injury in arm during the encounter.

In another incident, BSF troops killed one militant in general area of Dhaki Kot near Prankot in Mahore tehsil of Udhampur district today at about 1200 hours. One AK rifle was recovered from the slain militant.

Both the operations were going on till the last reports were received. Further details will be ascertained on termination of the operation, a defence spokesman said.

Rake runs for two kms sans driver

LUDHIANA, Nov 15: An alert cabin man today averted a possible rail disaster when he stopped a runaway rake which traversed a distance of two km on Ludhiana-Jalandhar section sans any driver.

The cabin man noticed a Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) consisting of three bogies moving towards Jalandhar with no crew or passengers on board. He immediately swung into action and took the rake on a dead line.

All the three bogies derailed after the train hit the dead end without causing any loss of lives.

Due to the derailment, overhead electric wires snapped as Jhelum Express, running on a parallel track, was passing the section. The driver of the Express train immediately applied the brakes and brought the train to a halt, a Railway spokesman said.

A Northern Railway official said the DMU, which was stationed at a platform at Ludhiana Railway station, was scheduled to leave for Jalandhar at 5.50 am, but suddenly took off on its own without the driver.

Luckily there was also no passenger on board the train, he said.

The driver of the DMU has been taken into custody and investigations into the incident are on, the official said.

Rail traffic on the Ludhiana-Jalandhar section was later restored and a team of specialists to pull out the badly-damaged rake had arrived from Ambala, he added. (PTI)

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