SRINAGAR, June 7:
The Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Liberation Party chairman Hashim Qureshi today asked the separatists not to shy away from elections saying it is not a “contagious disease”.
“If they (separatists) are in the Assembly, they can make their voice heard. They should not run away from the elections, they should know that election is not a contagious disease”, Qureshi, a 1971 hijacker turned politician, told reporters here.
He said if separatists make it to the Assembly they can pass an “Azaadi resolution” which will bring “more global attention to the issue. And if their resolution is not accepted they can resign”.
Qureshi, who had hijacked an Indian passenger plane to Pakistan in 1971, said his party rejects the 1949 United Nations plebiscite resolution on Jammu and Kashmir.
“The United Nations resolution on Kashmir is controversial because in its last resolution (in 1949) the people of the State are asked to choose between the two masters – India and Pakistan”, he said.
He said the United Nations resolution has become “obsolete” because of the conditions laid in the resolutions which asks Pakistan to withdraw its forces from the entire State and hand over the areas under its control to the “Government based in Srinagar”.
“When the resolution was passed, neither had Pakistan handed over parts of Gilgit and Baltistan to China nor was China in control of Aksai Chin. Question is will China and Pakistan leave control of these areas before the resolution is to be implemented”, Qureshi asked.
Qureshi said if the State Government allows his party, they will travel to the Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector on June 9 to participate in a “get together” meet called by PoK based Kashmir National Liberation Council.
He said if the Government denied his party the permission to travel to LoC, they will hold a demonstration in Srinagar for unification of the State, including the area of Gilgit and Baltistan which are under Pakistani control. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, June 7: India is expected to stick to its stand on authentication of troop positions at Siachen at the upcoming talks with Pakistan.
The issue was today discussed by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), which cleared the stand to be adopted by India in this regard, sources said.
Defence Secretaries of the two countries will meet in Islamabad on June 11 and 12 in a bid to find a solution to the vexed issue which has been hanging fire for over two decades.
Maintenance of troops in the glaciated mountainous region ranging in the altitude of above 15,000 ft is costing immensely to both countries in terms of monetary and human resources.
Commenting on the upcoming talks, Defence Minister A K Antony had recently said in Parliament that no one should expect any “dramatic” results from the Defence Secretaries’ talks.
India and Pakistan have held several rounds of talks to resolve the Siachen issue.
The two countries were close to an agreement a few years back on demilitarising the region but it failed to fructify as Pakistan refused to authenticate the current military positions of the two sides despite India pressing for it.
During a visit to Siachen in 2005, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh had said that the two countries should work to convert the highest battlefield into a mountain of peace.
Recently Pakistan army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had contended that India had hardened its position on the Siachen issue as compared to the 1989 stance it had adopted, saying that it “takes two hands to clap”.
Reacting on Kayani’s suggestion, the then Army Chief Gen V K Singh had rejected Pakistani counterpart’s proposal to demilitarise Siachen, dubbing it as a “gimmick”.
The armies of the two countries have lost more soldiers to hostile weather than in actual combat since April 1984 when Indian Army occupied the icy heights for the nation’s strategic defence.
The Siachen troop withdrawal issue gained prominence in Pakistan following a massive avalanche burying a Pakistan army camp there on April 7, resulting in the death of 129 soldiers and 11 civilians.
Just after the incident, Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari advocated troop withdrawal from Siachen during his informal meeting with Prime Minister Singh in April. (PTI)

Jehangir Rashid
SRINAGAR, June 7: Taking a cue from the Secretariat gherao programme carried out by employee organizations, the Urban Local Bodies’ employees today announced that they would march towards the Civil Secretariat on July 19 in support of their demands.
Addressing a press conference here, Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) member and President of his faction of Employees Joint Action Committee (EJAC), Abdul Qayoom Wani said that the State Government has failed to fulfill the demands of the Local Bodies’ employees. He said the march towards the Civil Secretariat would be a reminder to the State Government about the demands of Local Bodies’ employees pending for a long time.
“Time and again the Local Bodies’ employees have raised protest in support of their demands, but it has not made any difference to the State. From June 20, the Local Bodies’ employees would carry out phase wise agitation programme across the Kashmir valley. This would culminate with the Secretariat gherao programme on July 19,” said Qayoom.
The JCC member said that employees of 45 Municipal Committees and Councils of the Kashmir valley would march towards the Civil Secretariat on July 19. He said strong protests would be raised against the Government adding that the demands of the Local Bodies’ employees are genuine and they should be fulfilled.
“In case there is no difference and the demands of local bodies employees are not fulfilled then the employees would sit in front of the official residences of the bureaucrats and officers who always denied them their due rights. This would be a new phase of the employee revolution in the State and it would shake the entire machinery,” said Qayoom.
Manzoor Ahmad Pampori, President, Jammu and Kashmir Urban Local Bodies Employees United Forum (JKULBEUF) said that the indefinite strike proposed by the employees has been put off for the time being. Manzoor said the Government should fulfill their demands otherwise they would be forced to take the extreme step of resorting to indefinite strike.
“Due to the tourist season and also due to the difficulties that arise due to the strike we have for the time being decided not to press for the indefinite strike. But this does not mean we will sit back on our demands as there would be no let-up in our efforts for getting our due rights,” said Manzoor.
He said that salaries for the Local Bodies employees should be released as per the re-organization pattern under which 61 percent Dearness Allowance is payable to the employees. He said daily wagers and consolidated employees should be regularized. He said that time bound transfer policy should be applicable in the department.
Manzoor said that benefits like leave salary, SRO 43, family pension and commutation should be given to the local bodies employees. He said that divisional and State Level Departmental promotion Committee (DPC) meetings should be held regularly. He demanded release of 20 percent arrears to the Local Bodies’ employees under the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations.
According to the protest schedule drawn by JKULBEUF, employees of Shopian and Pulwama districts would protest on June 20 followed by employees of Budgam district on June 27, Baramulla June 30, Bandipora July 3, Kupwara July 7 and Ganderbal July 10.
On July 11, the employees would carry out the protest at Directorate of Urban Local Bodies here while as on July 14 employees of Anantnag district would carry out protests in support of their demands. The agitation would culminate on July 19 with the march towards Civil Secretariat.

Police to stagger yatris, create new routes

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 7: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has shared certain very specific inputs with Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) pertaining to security arrangements for Amarnath yatra. Acting on the inputs, the JKP has decided to put a security mechanism in place for peaceful and smooth yatra to holy cave shrine of Shri Amarnath ji in South Kashmir Himalayas beginning June 25.
Special Secretary (Home) Ajay Chadha, who concluded his visit to Srinagar, the summer capital of the State and held high level review of yatra arrangements with top brass of security, police, para-military, civil administration and Intelligence agencies, shared some inputs with police authorities with the MHA had managed through its Multi Agency Centre (MAC), official sources said.
The inputs have been shared with top brass of police, para-military and Intelligence agencies, they said, adding the authorities have started acting on the inputs and security mechanism for the yatris would be in place around June 20, well ahead of the start of yatra.
Sources said the MHA has agreed to rush additional companies of para-military to Jammu and Kashmir well in advance for deployment along yatra routes. The MHA would be providing a total of 74 companies of para-military forces to the State Government for protection of Amarnath yatris.
Some of the companies would be arranged from different States while others would be mobilized from the local resources here. A total of 100 companies would be deployed for the yatra including that of local police. Police force from various districts was being mobilized to generate companies.
Director General of Police (DGP), K Rajendra said police was trying to create two alternate routes at base camps of Baltal and Nunwan in Pahalgam from Srinagar to stagger the yatris as much as possible.
“Efforts were on to create alternate route at both base camps and stagger the yatris to keep Srinagar, Pahalgam, Baltal and other towns covered by the pilgrims de-congested’’, he said, adding that police and other security agencies were fully alive to the situation.
“A security mechanism in consultations with all security and Intelligence agencies, responsible for safety of Amarnath yatris, would be in place in full consultations with the MHA’’, Mr Rajendra said.
According to sources, security agencies have decided that Army would be manning heights around Shri Amarnath Ji Bhawan in South Kashmir Himalayas while para-military forces and police would be deployed along both tracks, base camps of Baltal and Nunwan in Kashmir, Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu and National Highways of Jammu-Pathankot and Jammu-Srinagar.
The MHA has assured the State administration that its additional companies would start reaching J&K by June 15 to ensure that deployment was completed by June 20. Every security measure would be in place when first batch of yatra would leave Jammu on June 24 while it would start onward pilgrimage from Baltal and Nunwan base camps from June 25.
Sources said the administration has chalked out a disaster management plan for the pilgrims.
“As authorities were expecting heavy rush of yatris to Amarnath ji shrine, they were busy creating additional space for them at Pahalgam, Mir Bazar and other points in Anantnag and Baltal to stagger the yatris. An exercise on this front was on and was likely to be completed in next week so that it was in place well before start of the yatra’’, they added.
According to sources, the MHA has asked the authorities to avoid congestion at Srinagar in view of heavy rush of tourists and Amarnath yatris in view of some “adverse reports’’, which suggested that the militants could take advantage of the situation.

Militants strike again in Srinagar

Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, June 7: Militants tonight fired at a former militant in Sadderbal area of Srinagar injuring two persons while security forces busted a militant hideout in the Central Kashmir district of Budgam and recovered huge cache of arms and ammunition.
Police said that militants fired indiscriminately on Ghulam Hassan Mir, a shopkeeper, at Sadderbal near Hazratbal in Srinagar at around 9 p.m.
Mir and one of his customers, Abdul Rashid, were injured in the firing. Both of them were rushed to SKIMS hospital for treatment.
Mir, who hailed from Lurgam Tral in South Kashmir was running his shop in Sadderbal, Srinagar for last 8 years. He was a former militant who was released from the jail and had shun the militancy. He has received a bullet in his neck and doctors attending him said his condition is critical.
Another person, Rashid who was also injured in the shoot out, has received a bullet in his leg and his condition is said to be out of danger. Both of them are being operated upon.
Police said that the pheran (Kashmiri loose gown) clad militants fled from the scene after carrying out the attack. No militant outfit has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.
The militant attack created panic in the area and shopkeepers pulled down their shutters and ran away for the safety as majority of the shops are open in the area till 10 p.m. Senior police officers rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation.
Police cordoned off the area and some people were questioned about the militant attack. However, no one was detained.
Tral area in South Kashmir where from Mir hailed is hot bed of militancy and the police suspected that the militants might have traveled all the way from Tral to target Mir.
The attack comes a week after militants fired at security forces in the heart of Srinagar city with automatic weapons injuring 7 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel.
The attack took place early in the morning on May 30 when two motor cycle born militants opened fire indiscriminately at a CRPF vehicle carrying jawans of the 82nd Battalion in Khanyar area of the old city. The vehicle was leaving their headquarters at Shiraz Cinema for law and order duty with the Rainawari police. Islamic Front (IF) had owned responsibility for that attack.
Militants last night also fired upon the house of the Lumberdar of Qaimoh-Kulgam, Mohammad Sidiq Bhat, 45, son of Wali Mohammad resident of Gobbal in South Kashmir district of Kulgam. However, there was no loss of life or property in the incident. Police have registered a case and investigations have been taken up.
Meanwhile police in Central Kashmir district of Budgam busted a hideout in Beerwah area and recovered arms and ammunition.
A police spokesman said that Budgam Police along with 2 RR launched a search operation in village Hanji Lawaypora at Beerwah in Budgam district. He said during search operation a hideout was busted.
The spokesman said two RPG grenades, four Chinese grenades, one Chinese pistol, one pistol magazine and three rounds of pistol ammunition were recovered.
Police have registered a case (FIR No. 58/2012 under section 7/25 Arms Act) at Police Station Beerwah.