NEW DELHI :  Senior military officials of India and Pakistan will meet tomorrow in Pooch sector in Jammu and Kashmir to discuss ways to strengthen the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) against the backdrop of violations in the recent past.

Brigade commanders of the two countries will meet in Chakan da Bagh area as part of a decision taken during the meeting of the DGMOs last month at the Wagah border.

Ways to strengthen the ceasefire will be the focus of the meeting, Army officials said here.

In the DGMOs meeting on December 24, it was decided that two flag meetings between brigade commanders will be held on the LoC to ensure peace and tranquility and the hotline mechanism  between them would be made ‘more effective and result-oriented’.

A few months back, the LoC was witness to major violations from the Pakistani side and the issue had to be taken up by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in New York.

Army chief Gen Bikram Singh on Monday warned Pakistan against any breaking any rules on the LoC saying India will respond with equal measure.

Soon after the Army chief made these remarks, the Pakistani military said such “provocative” statements were counter productive and claimed that his statement was “contrary to the facts on ground”.

India had also raised the issue of cross-border raids by Pakistan Army troops and the frequent ceasefire violations by them during the DGMO meeting. (AGENCIES)

JAMMU :  Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Ashok Prasad today said a well-planned strategy has been chalked out to thwart militant attacks in the state.    “As the militants have changed their strategies to disrupt peace by attacking the security forces but we have chalked out a well-planned strategy to foil all their attempts,” Mr Prasad told reporters at the sidelines of a Motor Cycle Rally at Police Sports Stadium here this afternoon.

The DGP said, “Their (militants) attacks are no longer affecting the public as they have changed their strategy and are now targeting police and security forces,” adding that in view of their changed strategy, well-knitted strategy has been chalked out to thwart militants’ attempts to target security forces to counter their new game plan.

He further said the graph of militancy has come down considerably as police and security forces have neutralized many of the top militant commanders and added, “militants are trying to create sensation by attacking police and security forces but we are trying our best to curb their movement and attacks.”    The DGP said the year 2013 witnessed lowest level of violence since the inception of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir as only 130 militancy related incidents were reported in the last year.    On recent spurt in violence, he said militants are trying to “instigate violence in Kashmir and they are adopting different tactics.”

“Yes, challenges are there as they (challenges) have not gone down,” he said adding, “problem is not within the country but it has come from elsewhere and much of the militancy is attuned from outside the country,” Mr Prasad said.    He however, said the security forces, army and the police are prepared to take on them (militants) any time amid the apprehensions of escalations of violence after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan.

On infiltration from International Border (IB), he said during his recent visit to Samba and Kathua districts, he reviewed the security scenario and measured to plug the sensitive spots from where such attempts could be anticipated.    Mr Prasad earlier while flagging of traffic awareness rally said road accidents have become a major concern for which people’s awareness is mandatory to avoid the accidents, besides ensuring smooth flow of traffic on the roads.  (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI :  Pakistan today made a strong case for relaxing visa regime, improving mobile connectivity and facilitating banking relationship to boost trade and business between the two neighbours.

“The non-tariff barrier has nothing to do with trade at all… It is the visa regime (which is hampering movement of businessmen and trade),” Pakistan Minister for Commerce and Textile Khurram Dastagir Khan said while address a CII function.

He underlined the need for relaxing visa regime to facilitate movement of businessmen.

Referring to the issue of mobile connectivity and banking issues, Khan said: “Both the countries should have these kinds of connectivities, which facilitate trade and investment.”

Khan, who is leading a delegation of 70 businessmen, said that efforts were on to enhance two-way trade through the Wagha border.

“An enhancement of trade through Wagha is under active negotiation at this moment. We are hoping to have a positive (outcome) on that,” he added.

On Pakistan according the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India, Khan said, “regarding the ‘M’ word, let us just say that we have shifted it one letter down to ‘N’ and now we are discussing ‘Non-Discriminatory Access’.

“The idea of course is (that) instead of getting caught or rather stranded in nomenclature, we should work sincerely towards proving substantial market access to each other whatever nomenclature we use.”

Before leaving for India, the minister told PTI in Islamabad: “The State Bank of Pakistan has just written to the RBI that three banks would like to open their branches in India. I don’t know when but it will happen. Some movement has taken place.”

Overall, India-Pakistan trade is worth USD 3 billion and the industry wants that all efforts should be made to increase it to USD 10 billion in the next three years. (AGENCIES)

BEIJING, Jan 16:  India, China and Russia today agreed that Afghanistan’s stability and security are important to the region against the backdrop of US plan to remove its troops from the war-torn country, raising fears of the reemergence of Taliban and other al-Qaeda linked elements.

The trilateral meeting of the three major emerging powers in the region followed the first India-China dialogue on Afghanistan held here last year to discuss mutual concerns and ideas to address problems emanating from US troop withdrawal.

“The three sides exchanged views on the situation in Afghanistan and agreed that security in Afghanistan is important to the country and the region,” officials said here about the talks.

“They reiterated support for a strong, united, stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan. They also agreed to meet again,” the officials said.

Deputy National Security Advisor Nehchal Sandhu led the Indian delegation at the talks.

Like India, China too concerned over the reemergence of al Qaeda and its likely impact on Muslim Uygur majority Xinjiang province, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan-Occupied- Kashmir.

China is battling a major separatist movement led by the East Trukistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), an al-Qaeda affiliate group, in the province.

China, which looks to play a major role in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US troops, has invested in mines as well as infrastructure development there.

Replying to a question on today’s meeting, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei said, “The development of situation in Afghanistan is closely related to the peace and stability in the region”.

“China is ready to work together with all relevant parties to take part in the peaceful reconstruction and reconciliation in Afghanistan, so as to jointly maintain peace and stability,” Hong said.

China has held similar trilateral meeting with Pakistan and Russia last year exploring opportunities to coordinate their positions and discussed the cooperation under the aegis of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), in which both China and Russia are active members while India and Pakistan are observers.

Despite being a close ally of Pakistan, which wield influence on Taliban, China expanded the scope of its talks with India and Russia besides the US to draw up its plans to deal with the emerging situation.

Asked to elaborate what China looks to achieve through the trilateral meeting, Hong said, “We hold the meeting with relevant parties with the purpose of jointly maintaining regional peace and stability because the situation in Afghanistan closely related to peace stability.”

With the regard to situation in Afghanistan China supported Afghan side’s efforts to maintain sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, he said.

“We also support the Afghan people in choosing the path of development in accordance with the national situation and Afghanistan in improving its relations with countries in the region,” he said.

China hopes that substantial progress will be made in the reconciliation process led by Afghan people, he said. “We hope that all relevant parties will respect legitimate concerns of the countries in the region.”

He said China plans to hold Foreign Minister-level meetings with concerned countries and will continue to play role in the reconciliation process in Afghanistan. (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI, Jan 16:
The Supreme Court today put the ball in Centre’s court to take a call on providing reservation in appointment for faculty posts in speciality and super speciality posts in medical colleges including the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
“We clarify that it is for the Central Government to take a decision as to whether there should be reservation in speciality and super speciality posts,” a five-judge bench headed by justice H L Dattu said.
The Centre had moved the apex court seeking review of a Constitution Bench judgement which had said it cannot take a view contrary to the one expressed in 1992 by a nine-judge bench in the Indra Sawhney case, also known as the Mandal case, that there could be no compromise with merit at super speciality stage.
As soon as Additional Solicitor General L Nageshwar Rao opened his arguments, the bench said the judgement makes it clear that the Centre has to follow the advice given in the Indra Sawhney case.
“Thats all and nothing more than that,” the bench said and explained by saying that “we have not added a word other than what has been said in the Indra Sawhney judgement”.
“It is open for the Central Government to take a decision whether there can be a reservation in speciality and super speciality posts,” the bench, also comprising justices S S Nijjar, Ranjan Gogoi, M Y Eqbal and Vikramajit Sen said.
“At the best, we can add one sentence that it is for Central Government to take decision to amend the Constitution,” it said leaving it to the Centre to take a decision on the controversial aspect of reservation.
“Even now the ball is in your court. You can say whether in speciality and super-speciality posts there can be reservation or not. Choice is yours to follow the advise made in the Indira Sawhney judgement,” the bench said.
“If you want to give reservation, give it and if the matter comes to court then we will see,” the bench said while disagreeing with the Centre’s submission that “advice has taken the shape of direction in the judgement”. (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD : Union Minister Shashi Tharoor today landed in a controversy over a cross-border tweet war involving his wife and a Pakistani woman journalist in which allegations of an affair between him and the foreigner came up.
As the indecorous row surrounding the suave 57-year-old Tharoor escalated, the controversy-prone minister took to Twitter to come out with a joint statement with his wife Sunanda Pushkar to say they were “happily married”, but distressed by “some unauthorised tweets”.
“We wish to stress that we are happily married and intend to remain that way. Sunanda has been ill and hospitalised this week and is seeking rest. We would be grateful if the media respects our privacy,” said the statement by Tharoor, who married Pushkar in 2010. The row erupted after exchange of some messages involving the three, some of them intimate.
“We are distressed by the unseemly controversy that has arisen about some unauthorised tweets from our twitter accounts,” the diplomat-turned politician said.
Pushkar has accused the 45-year-journalist Mehr Tarar of stalking her husband and trying to “break” her marriage when she was away for medical treatment.
Both Tharoor, who finds himself in the controversy barely months before the Lok Sabha elections, and Pushkar had married twice before. The Minister of State for Human Resources Development is a Congress Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram.
The tweet war, which set the social media abuzz, also saw Pushkar allege that Tarar was an ISI agent. Tarar denied the charge and threatened to file a defamation suit against her.
A day after she reportedly alleged that her husband was having an “extramarital affair” with the journalist and that she would “seek divorce”, Pushkar appeared to relent a bit and said earlier in the day, saying Tharoor and she are a “very happily married couple”.
Pushkar also alleged that Tarar wanted to have a “relationship”  with her husband and asked her to stay away.
Tarar, a mother of a 13-year-old son and an Op-ed writer and a contributor to a Pakistani daily, tweeted up a storm since the saga started playing out on social media, shooting off uncharitable barbs at Pushkar and defending herself.
Tarar dismissed the allegations as untrue and said she was totally amused. She said Sunanda has gone out of her mind.
“For a woman to trash another woman linking her w/her husband is the lowest form of sickness ever. It’s nauseous. No respect for her marriage,” the journalist said in a series of tweets.
After Tharoor’s joint statement was issued, Tarar tweeted, “The wife trashed the husband. Now doing WTH damage control….”. (AGENCIES)

SHIMLA : Under attack from BJP on corruption charges, Himachal Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today filed three defamation cases against Arun Jaitley and other party leaders, accusing them of unleashing a malicious campaign against him and his family through media to tarnish his image.
The Congress leader said he has filed a defamation case under Section 499 of IPC against Jaitley, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, and former state chief minister P K Dhumal and two separate petitions against BJP MP Anurag Thakur and Arun Dhumal, son P K Dhumal, in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Shimla, Jyotsana Dhadwal.
The CJM fixed the hearing on February 15.
Alleging political vendetta against him, 79-year-old Virbhadra Singh said it was not for the first time that he had been personally targeted by Dhumal.
He said that when he came to power there were numerous complaints against Dhumal and other BJP leaders. But he decided “not to continue the bad practice of political vendetta and victimisation started by Dhumal as he did not want make Himachal Pradesh another Punjab or Tamil Nadu. Not even a single case was registered against BJP leaders,” he said.
Singh went to the districts courts near Chakkar accompanied by some ministers and supporters and after filing the defamation complaints addressed the media in the presence of ministerial colleagues, chairpersons of boards and corporation and other senior Congress leaders.
Singh claimed that during his first term, Dhumal implicated him in Sagar Kattha case and the CD case was filed during the last term but he was exonerated by the court both the times.
“Dhumal Government submitted a 24-point charge sheet against me to the CBI in 1998. I was again given a clean chit by the agency after investigations at a time when NDA was in power at the centre,” he told reporters.
Jaitley had written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh alleging that Virbhadra Singh had taken bribe from a private power company and had demanded a CBI inquiry, calling it an “open and shut case of corruption”, but the Chief Minister had denied the charges and threatened to sue him.
Jaitley had dared the CM to file the defamation case and had said he would cross examine him in court on each of the charges. (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI : Mounting yet another assault, AAP MLA Vinod Kumar Binny today accused the party of “cheating” the people of Delhi by backtracking on its election promises and called Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal a “dictator”. The Laxmi Nagar MLA, who was sulking after being left out of the Cabinet last month, addressed a press conference where he slammed the leadership on a range of issues and said taking support of Congress to form the Government was a “compromise of the party’s principles”. “You (Kejriwal) have become a dictator. Stop fooling the people of Delhi. All decisions in the party are taken in closed rooms by four-five people. Arvind gets angry if people express any differences with him. If anyone speaks against him, he starts shouting,” Binny said. The 39-year-old-MLA said the party has “forgotten” its ideologies and become “an opportunist outfit” after coming to power. “They are using policy of use and throw. First, they have used Anna Hazare, Kiran Bedi and still many people in the party are being exploited,” he said. Binny said though the party during the election campaign had promised to provide 700 litres of free water to each household, the Government “very cleverly” announced that those exceeding the limit will have to pay for the full amount. On the electricity front, Binny said that the Government “defrauded” the people of Delhi as the party had promised to halve the bills after coming to power. “The Government said subsidy will be given to those whose monthly consumption does not exceed 400 units. This is totally unacceptable. The party has cheated the people of Delhi,” he said. The MLA said he will go on a strike if the promises made to people during the election campaign are not fulfilled by January 27. He also attacked the Ministers of the Delhi Government, maintaining though they had said they wouldn’t use red beacon cars, they have all taken big cars with VIP registration numbers. Referring to the alleged gangrape of a Danish woman, he said had another party been in power, then AAP would have held massive protests in the city to target the Government of the day. “What have they done to protect the women in Delhi?” he asked. “We had announced publicly that we wouldn’t give or take support of any political party. Then what prompted the party to change the decision. Discussions were held behind closed doors on the issue,” Binny said, attacking AAP for forming the Government with Congress backing. He had publicly displayed his unhappiness after he was left out of the Cabinet. The MLA also questioned the process for ticket distribution for the Lok Sabha polls and alleged that there was no transparency in it. “The party is drifting away from the issues on the basis of which it came to power. It is deviating from its principles,” he said. The MLA alleged that Kejriwal shares a “close friendship” with Congress MP Sandeep Dikshit and many of the Government decisions were influenced by leaders of Congress. Rubbishing the MLA’s criticism, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had yesterday said that Binny had come to him for ministership and later he wanted to contest the Lok Sabha polls. The MLA termed as “complete lie” Kejriwal’s statement that he was seeking a Lok Sabha ticket. He announced that he will go on a hunger strike if the party fails to fulfil its promises by January 27. “I am an honest soldier of this party. I will not leave the party,” he said. Terming his criticism of the Government and the party as a “fight for the truth”, Binny said AAP was not formed to grab power or make anybody the chief minister. “The party has misled the people of Delhi on a number of issues. There is a big mismatch between what the party promised and what the Government is doing,” he said. Binny also attacked the AAP leadership for failing to bring the Jan Lokpal Bill within 14 days of coming to power as promised. “AAP came into power on December 28. Today, it has been 19 days,” he said. He also trained his guns on Kejriwal, saying he was forced to not move to a sprawling flat following criticism by the people. “He would definitely have moved to the flat if there was no opposition to it by the people,” he said. (AGENCIES)