Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Apr 20: Militants today killed an Assistant Sub Inspector of Jammu and Kashmir Police in the old city area of Srinagar at point blank range.
Police said ASI Sukhpal Singh of Police Post Bagyas in old city area of Srinagar was on duty in Daresh Kadal area of the city when he was fired at point blank range by pistol borne militants this morning.
The militants fled from the scene after carrying out the attack. The ASI was left in a pool of blood as he received three bullets. He was removed to the nearby SMHS hospital where doctors declared him bought dead.
Panic gripped the area after the militant attack and Senior Police officers rushed to the spot to take the stock of the situation.
The ASI had been appointed in 1983, as constable in the Jammu and Kashmir Executive Police. He was hailing from village Chatoosa-Dangiwacha, in district Baramulla and is survived by mother and spouse.
Police have launched a hunt to trace out the killers of the officer. Police sources said that the cop killer has probably come from outside Srinagar and fled after carrying out the attack. Police suspected Lashkar-e-Toiba hand behind the killing. However, Islamic Front militant organization has claimed responsibility for the attack. They have threatened more attacks on police.
The Police officer’s killing comes at a time when a function at city Centre Lal Chowk was going on for the removal of a bunker in city Centre. Minister of State for Home, Nasir Aslam Wani and Director General of Police, Kuldeep Khoda announced removal of the bunker at the function organized on the occasion where senior police and para-military CRPF officers and some National Conference workers and shopkeepers were present.
Later in the afternoon the Minister, Inspector General of Police (IGP), S M Sahai, and senior police officers attended wreath laying ceremony of the killed police officer at Police Control Room (PCR), Srinagar.
While speaking to media on the sidelights of the ceremony, the Minister described the killing as cowardly act by militants and said that moral of the police force and its jawans is high. He said that the killing of the police officer has nothing to do with the removal of bunkers from Srinagar city. He said that by this killing militants want to show their presence in Srinagar city.
The Minister said that there is no resident militant in Srinagar and police and security agencies were looking for the militants responsible for the killing.
This is the first killing by militants in Srinagar city this year. Earlier, militants shot dead 40-year-old Bashir Ahmad Dar, a National Conference (NC) worker, in Srinagar’s Batmaloo area on December 24 last year. Militants also fired at and injured a police constable in Saraibala and a religious scholar Peer Jalaludin Bangroo at Batmaloo in Srinagar last month.

ISLAMABAD, Apr 20:
A Pakistani airliner with up to 131 people on board crashed in bad weather as it came in to land in Islamabad today, scattering wreckage and leaving no sign of survivors.
The civilian plane, flying from Pakistan’s biggest city and commercial hub Karachi to the capital Islamabad, crashed about five nautical miles (nine km) from the international airport, said aviation official, Pervez George.
He gave no details of casualties.
But body parts lay among wreckage strewn in a small settlement just outside Islamabad. Local residents said they had seen a ball of fire in the sky when the plane crashed.
A man who had been at waiting at Islamabad’s Benazir Bhutto International Airport for the flight yelled ‘my two daughters are dead’ as tears streamed down his face.
In a state of shock, he then slumped in a state of shock on the floor and sat silently as other relatives of passengers crowded around lists of those on board.
Among them was Zarina Bibi, desperate to determine whether her husband was on the Bhoja Air flight. ‘He called me before leaving Karachi but I don’t know if he was on this flight or not,’ said Bibi, whose eyes were red from crying.
There were conflicting reports of the number of people on board. Aviation official George put the number at 131, but another official said there had been 122 people aboard.
The aircraft was operated by local carrier Bhoja Air. The airline’s spokesman, Jaser Abro, said 116 passengers were on board and up to six crew.
State television reported that all hospitals in Islamabad and the nearby city of Rawalpindi had been put on high alert after the crash.
The last major aviation accident in Pakistan was in July 2010, when a commercial airliner operated by AirBlue with 152 people on board crashed into the hills overlooking Islamabad.
In 2006, a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft crashed near the central city of Multan, killing 45 people. (agencies)

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 20: Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy and National Conference patron, Dr Farooq Abdullah was responding to the treatment even as he spent fifth day in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi due to pneumonic and chest infections.
Doctors in the AIIMS described condition of Dr Abdullah as stable.
According to Prof G C Khilnani, Physician and Professor in the Department of Respiratory Medicines and Sleep Disorders, AIIMS, Dr Abdullah was likely to be discharged from the hospital by Monday.
Farooq was taking rest, the doctors said, adding he has been taken off the antibiotics and put on oral medicines.
His condition has shown a lot of improvement during last five days of hospitalization.

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 20: Member Parliament and former Union Minister, Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz is likely to get another term as president of Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC).
An announcement in this regard will be made by the party high command shortly, sources in the AICC said.
Prof Soz was appointed JKPCC chief on February 13, 2008 following resignation of Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed in January 2008.
They said that Congress high command is also working on a formula for major surgery among the Congress ministers in an attempt to strengthen the party in the State.
“The strengthening of the party is imperative as practically less than two years period has been left for consolidating the party base before next Assembly elections”, they said.
It is pertinent to mention here that senior Congress leader and Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Ghulam Nabi Azad had recently advised the party leaders and Ministers to gear up their activities even in those areas from where party has no representation in the Legislature to brighten the party’s prospects during next Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, Prof Soz soon after his arrival here called on Governor N N Vohra. They discussed many subjects of public interest pertaining to the State.
Prof Soz apprised the Governor of Congress party’s stand on the issues like strengthening of Panchayati Raj institutions and impending elections to the Local Bodies. Prof Soz is undertaking tour of district Rajouri from tomorrow. He will address public meeting at Koteranka tomorrow at 12 noon and workers rally at 4 pm.
On April 22, he will address Congress rally at Kalakote. Senior leaders of the PCC, Member Parliament and some Ministers will accompany the PCC chief.

Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Apr 20: With the announcement of the short validity passports for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims by the Centre, people are making beeline outside Passport Office Srinagar and so far 3000 affidavits were filed for these passports in past few days.
This has led to the law and order problem with the police finding it difficult to manage the huge rush of passport seekers outside the Passport Office in Tourist hub of Boulevard on the bank of Dal lake.
Scores of people today held a sit in protest on Boulevard road on the bank of Dal lake and blocked the traffic for about half an hour. Police tried to persuade the protesters to lift the blockade of the road and later agreed for sending a delegation that met the Passport Officer Srinagar, Firdous Iqbal in his office and demanded immediate issuance of passports.
It may be mentioned here that after the announcement of short validity passports for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims people in large numbers are approaching the passport office Srinagar with affidavits for short validity passports.
Firdous Iqbal, told the Excelsior that its office has received 25,000 applications for passports this year and there are large number of applications which needs to be processed. He said that 19, 000 passports were issued by the passport office this year so far. “This month the passport office has issued a record number of 6,000 passports”, he added.
The passport officer said that the passport office has a limited staff and can’t handle so many applications at a time. He said that for the Hajj aspirants the Hajj committee should send a selected list of Hajjis for 2012 Hajj and assured that his office will provide passports to them in short time. He said that this will reduce the burden on the office otherwise everyone is coming to Hajj office for short duration passports resulting in huge rush which is difficult for his office to handle.
“Our office has the daily capacity of only 300 to 350 passports. We want to issue as many passports as we can but we don’t have so much man power,” Iqbal said.

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 20: Legislative Council Chairman, Amrit Malhotra today nominated various Ministers/members of the House to serve on the Joint Select Committee (JSC) on the bills pertaining to J&K Municipal laws. He directed the JSC to submit report to the House during the next session of the Legislative Council and if it deemed necessary, it may propose additional provisions in the Bills.
Deputy Chief Minister, Tara Chand has been nominated as the Chairman of the JSC while as Vijay Bakaya, Ravinder Sharma, Ajay Sadhotra and Mohammad Ashraf Mir will be its members.
Similarly, the Deputy Chief Minister has been nominated as Chairman while as Murtaza Ahmad Khan, Naresh Kumar Gupta, Khalid Najeeb Suharwardy, Sheikh Ghulam Rasool and Nurboo Gialchan will be the Members of JSC on J&K Property Tax Board Bill.