SRINAGAR, Mar 31:
Moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference today rubbished as “figment of imagination” the claims made by US attorney Neil H Macbride that its Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was controlled by Pakistan’s ISI.
“The statement made by Macbride about the Mirwaiz is his figment of imagination and laughable,” Hurriyat said in a statement.
The statement was issued soon after the Mirwaiz returned here from a fortnight-long tour during which he visited Geneva to attend UN Human Rights Council meeting and performed Umrah in Saudi Arabia.
“Not only Mirwaiz, many people including justice-loving people in India, have written letters of support to Kashmir American Council chairman G N Fai. The US attorney has used their letters to level false allegations on them, which is not only unfortunate but condemnable as well,” the Hurriyat said.
The amalgam claimed that the “movement” in Kashmir was indigenous and was not being run at the behest of outside powers.
Attorney MacBride had made the claim before the US District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, ahead of the scheduled sentencing of Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai who had set up an organisation Kashmiri American Council in the US to promote the separatist cause. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, Mar 31:
Days after his explosive media interviews, Army chief Gen V K Singh has named retired Lt Gen Tejinder Singh in his complaint to the CBI as the person who offered him a Rs.14 crore bribe to clear a tranche of nearly 600 “sub-standard” trucks.
He has assured the agency of providing more material about the alleged bribe offer very soon, CBI sources said.
Tejinder Singh, who has refuted the allegations, may now be questioned by the CBI, which has started examining the complaint received yesterday. He has slapped a defamation case against the Army Chief and other officers.
Sources said a call on whether to proceed with a preliminary enquiry or a regular FIR would be taken soon.
The agency was waiting for a formal complaint from the Army Chief regarding details of alleged bribe offer to initiate a formal probe into the matter referred to it by the Defence ministry. CBI officers had met him on Monday evening.
The Army Chief had not named the vehicles in the interviews but he was referring to Tatra trucks.
Contradicting Gen V K Singh’s perception of Tatra trucks, DRDO chief V K Saraswat said there was nothing substandard about the vehicles used as base for launching all important missiles like Prithvi and Agni.
“Tatra truck is an outstanding truck… They have a very good cross country capability and can move at good speeds,” Saraswat said at a press conference at Defence Expo here.
In Kolkata, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee sought to downplay the battle of attrition between the Army Chief and the government.
“There is no fiasco. It has been explained by the Defence Minister on the floor of the House (Parliament),” he told reporters at his south Kolkata residence on being asked about the differences between the Army chief and the Defence Minister.
The Defence Ministry had recommended a CBI probe into the allegation made by the Army chief.
After receiving reference from the Ministry, the agency had asked it to make available a complaint from Singh besides other details such as list of witnesses and supporting documents after which it would initiate its probe in the case.
In a suo-motu statement in the Rajya Sabha, Antony had said the Army chief had told him about the bribe offer, which he heard with “shock” and asked him to take action against the person.
But the Army chief did not want to pursue the matter for unknown reasons, the minister had said.
In a related development, Government said the Intelligence Bureau has been asked to quickly complete its inquiry into the leak of a letter written by the Army Chief to the Prime Minister highlighting various shortcomings in the Army but no time has been fixed for it.
“I don’t think there is a time-frame. The Ministry of Defence has asked the IB to look into the matter and I know that the IB is looking into the matter. There is no time-frame. But obviously it has to be done quickly,” Home Minister P Chidambaram told reporters here.
On Thursday, Antony vowed to take the “strongest action” under laws against those responsible for the leak.
Antony said the government will go to the root of it and find out the persons behind the “anti-national” act.
The Army chief had yesterday said that there were “rogue elements” trying to project a “schism” between him and the Defence Minister and asserted that he was part of the government.
His attempt to further cool tempers apparently comes as a response to Antony expressing government’s confidence in the service chiefs at a press conference on Thursday.
Antony and Gen Singh had condemned the leak of the Army chief’s letter to the Prime Minister as anti-national and high treason respectively. (PTI)

By Mohinder Verma

The exercise towards getting first ever elegant statue of Maharaja Hari Singh was started more than a year back after the eminent residents of City of Temples stressed the need to remember the former ruler in a befitting manner. Accordingly, official orders in this regard were issued and Jammu Municipal Corporation roped in noted sculptor, Ravinder Jamwal, to sculpt the statue of the last Dogra ruler of the State.
Since the second bridge on river Tawi had already been named after the Dogra ruler, it was decided to get the life size statue of Maharaja Hari Singh installed near a point where the flyover connects with bridge. A park, which has been constructed by the Jammu Development Authority near Fortune Inn Riviera Hotel, is also going to be named after Maharaja Hari Singh.
This statue is going to be the first in Jammu having height of 12 feet as all other statues of different personalities installed in different parts of the City of Temples are not more than 10 feet in height.
To ensure that sculpture matches the personality of Maharaja Hari Singh, the sculptor had to scan his numerous photographs available in local archives. But, he could not find any of them entirely different from those already in public domain.
Later, Ravinder Jamwal found it appropriate to approach none else than Dr Karan Singh, son of Maharaja Hari Singh, and visited his residence in Union Capital. The exercise of selecting altogether different photograph of last Dogra ruler came to an end when the noted sculptor selected a very attractive picture from the album of photographs taken during the marriage of Dr Karan Singh.
“I found the picture very unique and altogether different from all those available in archives so far and with the approval of Dr Karan Singh I started carving out the statue”, Jamwal said when contacted, adding “in this photograph, Maharaja Hari Singh is in walking posture with a kirch in his one hand”.
It took more than eight months to Rajinder Jamwal to complete the statue of Maharaja Hari Singh and the same is going to be unveiled tomorrow by Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Dr Karan Singh in the presence of huge gathering comprising Members of Parliament, Ministers, Legislators and prominent citizens.

By Neeraj Rohmetra
Jammu, Mar 31: Shri Amarnath Shrine Board would strive towards enhancing the carrying capacity of the yatra tracks and undertake progressive improvements in regard to the other yatra facilities.
These recommendations have been made by the Sub-Committee headed by Sri Sri Ravi Shanker, which was constituted in July 2011 to advise the Board regarding the duration and schedule of the yatra in the year 2012 and beyond.
According to the report submitted by the Committee, the Shrine Board should also stipulate appropriate regulations to ensure against such a larger number of pilgrims losing their lives due to medical failures every year. This was stated in view of the fact that as many as 45, 68 and 107 people had lost their lives in 2009, 2010 and 2011 yatras respectively.
The report has further recommended that no yatri would be permitted to embark on pilgrimage to the Holy Shrine without securing a Registation Permit, which shall be valid for a specified date and route.
The annual Shri Amarnath pilgrimage would symbolically commence on the auspicious day of Jyestha Purnima, a day on which the Shrine Board would organize a Pooja at the Holy Cave Shrine and, if this is not feasible due to climatic factors, the Pooja would be held at any other suitable place in the Yatra area, to invoke the blessings of the Lord Shiva for the smooth conduct of the pilgrimage.
“The Shrine Board would organize the process of Registration of Yatris from an early enough date, but not later than May 1, 2012, for their embarking on the pilgrimage which shall commence via both the routes from June 25, this year, which is auspicious day and conclude on Raksha Bandhan”, the report said.
The Shrine Board would make an internal assessment preferably during the first week of June on the status of snow-melt and explore, in consultation with all other stakeholders, the possibility of allowing the Yatris to embark on pilgrimage some time earlier on some auspicious day. “In such an eventuality, Yatris could be registered at short notice through on-line or any other quick means”, the Committee recommended.
Though representatives of the Baba Yatri Niyas in their meeting with the Committee suggested that the Baltal route should be opened for the pilgrimage earlier, without waiting the Chandanwari route to be cleared, the Committee strongly ruled out this possibility.
The Chief Secretary had submitted before the Committee categorically that it was absolutely necessary to commence the Yatra both from Baltal and Chandanwari routes simultaneously on a given day, to avoid serious difficulties, which had arisen in the past.
Top officials of Army and Police, who had deposed before the Committee had urged the Chairman to use his personal influence to dispel the wrong perceptions that Yatra duration is decided on the basis of political compulsions/ threat, rather than on genuine concerns relating to the ground weather conditions and adequate time required to ensure all security arrangements and other facilities on ground.
Security forces need to dominate the entire Yatra area several days ahead of the commencement date. Officials said security personnel are required to arrive 45 days before the Yatra commencement, where after they are imparted pre-induction training, followed by acclimatization/ induction at various locations. They have to move into the Yatra area under very difficulty conditions, when the snow hasn’t melted on the tracks.
The Chairman of the Committee emphatically stated that there was no attempt whatsoever, from any quarter to influence the Board to reduce the Yatra duration. He pointed out that all the agencies including various State Governments, Security Forces and the Shrine Board required a reasonable preparatory time period to move personnel and provide the requisite infrastructure at the identified locations in the Yatra area days ahead of the commencement, without waiting the tracks to be cleared.
The Report stated that the representatives of the Niyas presented their memorandum to the Chairman, which referred, inter-alia to the need for enlarging the Yatra duration to two months and beyond, without expressing its views as to how the present ground constrains/ difficulties, religious traditions, etc. could be overcome.

By Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Mar 31: Kashmiri separatist Dr Sayyid Ghulam Nabi Fai, who headed Kashmir American Council (KAC) and was sentenced to two years imprisonment by a Virginia court in the United States yesterday, had been instrumental in funding various terrorist organisations and over ground supporters of the militants in the Kashmir Valley.
According to highly placed police sources here, though Fai had migrated to the United States in eighties, he remained active in Jammu and Kashmir through his agents in separatist organisations, militants outfits and some individuals, who, openly or covertly, espoused the cause of militancy in the Valley.
“The list of beneficiaries of funding from Fai’s KAC were a number of people in Kashmir, ranging from so-called intellectuals to separatists and militant outfits. Police and Intelligence agencies in the State were aware of many such persons, who had been funded by the KAC”, sources said.
They added that list of Fai’s contacts in the State was not confined to Kashmir Valley but there were many supporters of militancy in Jammu region also, who benefitted from KAC Director’s funding and other hospitality. Fai had sponsored visits of many persons from Jammu and Kashmir and New Delhi to America and offered them hospitality for several days.
Sources said a number of separatist leaders and militant commanders, arrested from time to time in various parts of the State during past two decades, had named Fai as their sponsor. Police and Intelligence agencies had briefed the Union Government about the disclosures of separatists pertaining to involvement of Fai in fanning militancy in the State.
“A number of prominent separatist leaders were on paid list of Fai. They got huge funds, directly or indirectly at the behest of Fai. A part of this fund was diverted to militants”, they added.
Documents available with security agencies revealed that Delhi Police had picked up an Uttar Pradesh resident, Shahabuddin Gouri, who was linked to Fai and associates, from a Jawahar Lal Nehru University hostel earlier.
Gouri was arrested on the basis of information provided by an alleged terror money courier, Ashfaq Hussain Lone. The case was later handed over to the CBI and Enforcement Directorate.
Investigations had then revealed that Gouri received around Rs 16 lakh from alleged hawala dealer Shambu Dayal on instructions from Fai and his associates. Gouri had handed over the money to Lone, who told investigators he had also spoken to Fai and Jeelani. He claimed that the money came from foreign donors, who wanted to help Kashmiris.
Investigators had also come to know that Gouri had links with militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin, whom he had met several times in Pakistan.
Security agencies had information that many of the participants, who were invited for conference in the United States by Fai were also provided money to fund terror in Jammu and Kashmir. Some of the funds were routed through the businessmen in Kashmir.
“There had been inputs that hawala money, in addition to separatists, had been given to Hizbul Mujahideen with the motive to give militancy an `indigenous shape’.
The funds amounted to several crores, sources said, adding the mode of funds diversion was mostly the hawala money generated from Fai’s agents in Saudi Arabia and other countries. In some cases, certain banking transactions had also been detected, sources said.
Arrest of Fai, sources said, has brought into focus the issue of hawala and illegal transfer of money.
“These scourges have not been eradicated for the simple reason that politically and socially influential individuals are involved in it. The Government has to put down its foot and clean sweep the deck. Militancy in Kashmir is fed by hawala, which was well known to all security and Intelligence agencies besides the Union and the State Government”, they added.
Fai, who was arrested in July last from his residence in the outskirts of Washington by the FBI and charged with not declaring income from unknown source and evading tax dues of Internal Revenue Service (IRS), was one of the first three Jamaat-i-Islami students, who had joined hardline Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Shah Gilani’s lessons in a seminary. In mid 80s, he escaped to Pakistan and then to the US with silent support from ISI, sources said.
In fact ISI established and lavishly funded (thanks to Riyadh-based Ar-Rabita) three highly motivated anti-India propaganda centers in the West headed by diehard India bashers of Kashmiri origin, Brussels centre run by Advocate Tramboo, US centre run by Fai and London Centre by Nazir Shawl.
Through high profile seminars, symposia, and conference under the evocative banner line of “Indian atrocities in Kashmir”, Fai had, with the passage of time, roped in a cross section of American gentry that included lawmakers, media persons, social activists, jurists, academia, political activists and policy planners with the sole purpose of misleading them and manipulating their opinion.
Defence counsel had yesterday said in the Virginia court that at least 53 individuals, all beneficiaries of his largesse, had in their letters to the District Judge, urged him to give Fai lighter sentence.
Included among them were Mirwaiz Moulavi Farooq of moderate Hurriyat Conference, Ved Bhasin of Kashmir Times, Prof. Hamida Banoo of Kashmir University, Rajmohan Gandhi and Gautam Navlakha. Obviously all of them and scores more have been the beneficiaries of Fai’s largesse and some of them were invited more than once over the years to the United States for attending seminars.
Worthwhile to mention here that the US Attorney had claimed before the court that separatist Kashmir leader and chairperson of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was “supported and controlled by ISI”.
“The plethora of facts that have come to light in the course of prosecution, and confessions of Fai of having received a hefty sum of 3.5 million US dollars from ISI for manipulating anti-India and pro-Pakistan Kashmir propaganda gave a lie to the much orchestrated `azaadi’ slogan of Kashmir separatists and their acohorts. A dispassionate assessment of these facts revealed that the slogan of `azaadi’ has been a mask behind which a massive campaign for Kashmiris annexation to Pakistan was being planned”, sources said.
They added that Pakistan’s oft-repeated claim of giving only moral and diplomatic support to the separatists in Kashmir has been torn to shreds by its own point-man.
“Who are the beneficiaries of this massive conspiracy against Kashmiris and who the victims are? This question has come up in full force and Kashmir political circles are at a loss to explain to the new generation what the ulterior motive of Pakistan’s “Kashmir cause” can be and who are its victims? By sidetracking the fact that Pakistan and its ISI are the real source of decimation of nearly a hundred thousand Kashmiris (killed, wounded, disappeared or vandalized) separatist leadership has put itself in a desperately mortifying situation. They cannot escape the responsibility of being the source of destruction of life, property and peace in Kashmir”, sources observed.
They pointed out that with the judgment coming from American court of law, Pakistan and ISI both stood exposed in the eyes of international community which, obviously, will have full sympathy with the unsuspecting people of Kashmir for being misled, misguided for six decades in the past and made fodder for the cannons of ISI.
“Separatists and their affiliates, whether in Kashmir or in the country or any other place in the world, all have been stakeholders in the industry called Kashmir issue”, sources said.
However, they were of the view that the serious task that remained to be accomplished was to uproot this perfidy.
“It demands drastic action against those Indian nationals, who have been accomplices in Fai’s criminal conspiracy. The charge against them is that their cooperation, overt or covert, is virtual sedition against the country”, sources said.
In addition, sources said, they have been partners in the abetment of death of thousands of innocent Kashmiris under the rubric of “freedom struggle”. “The State Government has an obligation to mete out justice to the affected families by bringing the abettors of criminal acts in Kashmir to book, and hand out to them exemplary punishment”, sources said.
“Hosting a variety of leading lights from intellectual segments in lavishly arranged seminars, paying them to and fro air tickets and throwing luxurious luncheons and dinners in addition to other motivation, Fai managed to fuel Pakistan’s case for Kashmir, sources said, adding that the usual theme of these exercises was to spread disinformation about legal and constitutional status of India in Kashmir, and give credence to the canard of “human rights violations” by the security forces in the Valley.
In past 20 years, the Federal US agencies had intercepted some 350,000 emails and 90,000 telephone calls of Fai, according to Nina Ginsberg, Fai’s Attorney fighting a District Court of Law in Virginia, USA her client’s case of tax evasion, fraud and seditious activities, as per a news report of the international news agency.
He has also been charged with using American soil for carrying on activities inimical to India.
Prosecution Counsel produced record of Fai having received unaccounted amount of over USD 3.5 million from Pakistani intelligence agency ISI. Functioning under the cover of a fraudulent NGO called KAC, Fai was tirelessly carrying on the anti-India agenda on Kashmir set forth for him by his ISI handlers, sources said.
“Now that the Fai episode has uncovered the true face of `azaadi movement’, the Hurriyat Conference stands established as pro-Pakistan powerhouse generating sedition in the valley. The Government must swung into action and arrest all tainted persons and then prosecute them under the law dealing with treason.
This will immensely encourage peace loving forces in the State. Separatists cannot be allowed to contrive enslavement of Kashmiris under the feigned slogan of azaadi”, sources said.

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 29: Ruling National Conference three-time MLA from Kupwara, Saifullah Mir today not only addressed JKLF co-founder Mohammad Maqbool Bhat as `Saheb’ but also described Trehgam as historical town of Kupwara district for being birth place of Bhat in the Legislative Assembly.
“I’m not ashamed of calling Trehgam as historical town of Kupwara district for twin reasons. First, it was headquarters of Plebiscite Front of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah and second, it was birth place of Mohammad Maqbool Bhat Saheb’’, Mr Mir said when quizzed by PDP MLA Nizam-ud-Din Bhat as to why he had referred Trehgam as historical town.
MLA Domana, Bharat Bushan was lone voice of dissent to the remarks of Saifullah.
Saifullah Mir was speaking on the Appropriation Bill in the Assembly when he referred to Trehgam as historical town.
PDP MLA Nizam-ud-Din Bhat interrupted Saifullah Mir and wanted to know that there was no historical significance attached to Trehgam as per his knowledge excepting the fact that it was birth town of Maqbool Bhat.
“He (Mr Bhat) might by accepting that I would say no’’, Saifullah said citing his twin reasons for historical significance of Trehgam.
Mohammad Maqbool Bhat was hanged in Tihar jail of New Delhi on February 11, 1984 for killing of security personnel including a Crime Branch Inspector Amar Chand on September 14, 1966. He was found guilty of killings and sentenced to death. He had escaped from Srinagar prison but was captured in Pakistan. His clemency petition was turned down by the then President Giani Zail Singh as JKLF members had on February 6, 1984 murdered Indian diplomat Ravindra Mhatre in Birmingham, England seeking release of Bhat.