News Analysis India

Tag: Jammu and Kashmir

  • Restrictions imposed in Kashmir, mobile services shut as separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani laid to rest

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR: Authorities have imposed restrictions and shut internet and mobile service barring BSNL post-paid service in Kashmir as senior separatist leader and former Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Geelani was laid to rest in a local graveyard near his Hyderpora residence in Srinagar in the early hours of Thursday.

    The burial of 92-year-old Geelani, who passed away at his residence yesterday evening, was held at 4.45 am today, sources said. His family members, some relatives and neighbours were allowed to participate in his burial.

    Immediately after his death at around 10.30 pm, authorities imposed restrictions in Srinagar and other parts of the Valley to restrict public movement and prevent people from thronging to Geelani’s residence to pay their homage.

    The security men have placed concertina wires and armoured vehicles on the roads leading to Geelani’s residence to restrict movement of people.

    ALSO READ | Syed Ali Shah Geelani: Lone voice of opposition to Musharraf’s four-point formula to resolve Kashmir issue

    The authorities have also suspended mobile internet and mobile services across the Valley. However, the BSNL postpaid and broadband service is working.  

    Geelani, who was under house detention since 2010, was not keeping well and was suffering from multiple ailments.

    Geelani, who was born on September 29, 1929, had been part of mainstream politics till eruption of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir in 1989.  He had contested and won Assembly polls from Sopore in 1972, 1977 and 1987.

    After the eruption of militancy, Geelani had joined separatist politics and emerged as one of the strong face of separatist movement in J&K.

    Known for his hardline ideology and advocating Jammu and Kashmir’s accession with Pakistan, Geelani quit his faction of separatist conglomerate Hurriyat Conference in June last year.  He was heading the Hurriyat faction since 2003.

    The Hurriyat Conference, an umbrella of different separatist groups,  was formed in 1993. However, owing to differences, there was a split in Hurriyat in 2003 and Geelani formed his own faction, known as hardline faction while Mirwaiz Umar Farooq headed another faction (a moderate faction).

    Geelani was a member of Jamaat-e-Islami Kashmir but later quit Jamaat to form his own party — Tehreek-e-Hurriyat – with his likeminded friends and colleagues.

    Geelani spearheaded the 2008 land row agitation, 2010 agitation and 2016 agitations in Valley.

    He was opposed to any bilateral talks with India and always favoured tripartite talks involving Pakistan, Kashmiri leaders and India. He was the only Kashmiri leader to oppose former Pakistan military ruler General Parvez Musharraf’s 4-point Kashmir formula.

    Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and People’s Conference chairman Sajjad Gani Lone have condoled Geelani’s demise.

  • Separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani dies after prolonged illness

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: Pro-Pakistan separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani died here on Wednesday after a prolonged illness, officials said.

    Geelani, who was a member of banned Jamaat-e-Islami and chairman of hardline Hurriyat Conference, had been suffering from various ailments for nearly last two decades.

    He was a former MLA.

  • All is not well in Jammu and Kashmir: Farooq Abdullah on violence against elected representatives

    By PTI

    JAMMU: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday debunked the BJP’s claim about “all is well in Jammu and Kashmir”, saying if that is actually the case, why are its activists being killed in militancy violence.

    Addressing a day-long interactive session with National Conference functionaries of Jammu Province at the Sher-e-Kashmir Bhavan, Abdullah dwelt upon the overall scenario and also discussed party affairs with senior colleagues.

    He made a reference to the acts of violence against elected representatives and called for adequate security to those elected to panchayat raj institutions.

    “Their security should not be jeopardised,” Abdullah cautioned.

    The NC president said the people, especially the youth, are faced with numerous problems as the promises made to them have proved to be a hoax.

    “Unemployment is on the rise, and the educated unemployed are undergoing a phase of despair. The is a need to arrest this trend,” he added.

    Abdullah, however, expressed optimism about things changing for the better in Jammu and Kashmir, saying the National Conference has to play a vital role in this regard.

    He called for further rejuvenating the party at the grassroots level and enhancing public outreach.

    He said the National Conference cadre has to get further activated to meet the challenges.

    “We are passing through the most difficult times, and there is a crucial need of maintaining guard against polarising forces by upholding our unity,” Abdullah said, adding that division of the society is inimical to our glorious ethos.

  • J&K: Army commander meets kin of youths who joined terror groups, asks them to bring wards back

    By PTI

    SHOPIAN: In a first, the top army commander in the Kashmir Valley on Tuesday met members of around 80 families whose children have joined various terrorist groups in Jammu and Kashmir and urged them to bring their wards back in whatever way possible.

    “I request you to pull out your children from the swamp called terrorism.

    I leave it up to you how you pull them out but please do it,” General-Officer-Commanding of the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps Lt Gen D P Pandey told the families at a function held at a stadium in this highly-volatile district of south Kashmir.

    This is for the first time that the senior most army officer in the valley has met in person the families whose children have picked up guns.

    Inspector General of Police (Kashmir Range) Vijay Kumar told the parents that “police and security forces have been providing opportunities (to local terrorists) to surrender during live encounters since last year.

    Families are requested to convince their children (newly recruited terrorists) to come back”.

    The army commander cautioned the families against the “white-collar” terrorists roaming among the general masses and said “while the children of these while-collar terrorists are enjoying and studying in the rest of the country, your children are targeted by these people. Beware of them.”

    “I have come to you and I want to share that there are two aspects when a youth picks up guns. The first could be that he wants to impress girls or for drugs or is not good at education or even if he is good at education, he has fascination for guns.

    “The second and dangerous aspect is, whom I call, white-collar terrorist. He is one among us whose children are studying or employed only to ensure that his children are not sucked into the gun culture. However, this white-collar terrorist ensures that children of other families pick up guns,” Lt Gen Pandey said at the function, ‘Jashn-e-Janoob’ (Festival of South).

    “I had requested for a one-to-one meeting with you all to appeal to you to pull out your children quietly from terror groups.

    And let me tell you that even during operation, if some boy is ready to surrender, I assure you that the army will do whatever possible, even at the cost of suffering injury, to get your child back,” he said drawing applause from the families.

    Among the families of terrorists present during the interaction were Abdul Hamid Najar, father of active militant Sumair Ahmad Najar; Mohammad Saleem Malik, brother of active militant Umar Ishfaq Malik; Mohammad Hussain Wani, father of active militant Naseer Ahmad Wani; Bashir Ahmad Wani, father of active militant Adil Ahmad Wani; Mohammad Khalil Wani, father of active militant Adil Hussain Wani; Mohammad Ramzan Sheikh, father of active militant Abid Ramzan Sheikh; and Farooq Ahmad Sheikh, father of active militant Sameer Ahmad Sheikh.

    The rest of the family members did not wish to be identified.

    The function was also attended by Victor Force GOC Maj Gen Rashim Bali, Brigadier N S Grewal and Commanding Officer of 44-Rashtriya Rifles Col A K Singh.

    Later, a track-and-field competition was organised for the youth of various districts of south Kashmir, in which the Pulwama contingent emerged as the winner.

    Lt Gen Pandey handed over prizes to the winners.

  • Amit Shah launches web portal for registrations of units for industrial development in J-K

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday launched the web portal for registration of units for industrial development in Jammu and Kashmir.

    Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh were also present at the inauguration of the web portal for registrations of units under the ‘New Central Sector Scheme 2021’ for Jammu and Kashmir via video conferencing.

    Earlier on August 4, Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Som Parkash, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, informed that the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade notified “New Central Sector Scheme for industrial development of Jammu and Kashmir” with financial outlay of Rs 28,400 crore on February 19, 2021 and is effective from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2037.

    The scheme is applicable for any eligible industrial (manufacturing) entity or eligible service sector enterprise other than those run departmentally by Government, which is registered business enterprise under Goods and Service Tax, he stated.

    The minister said that the scheme offers four incentives namely Capital Investment Incentive, Capital Interest subvention, Goods and Service Tax Linked Incentive (GSTLI) and Working Capital Interest Subvention.

    “The scheme will help in creation of more employment opportunities and promotion of tourism in the region. The estimated direct employment generation is anticipated to be nearly 78,000 persons, however, the scheme has potential to trigger much more gainful employment indirectly and also, has potential to further promote tourism activities in Jammu and Kashmir,” Parkash had stated.

  • Jammu & Kashmir cop, mother arrested in Poonch over alleged murder of his wife

    By PTI

    JAMMU: A policeman and his mother were arrested over alleged murder of his wife, a teacher, in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said Monday. With the two arrests, the police claimed to have solved the murder case of 36-year-old Shahnaz Akhter at Keri Gulatta village last week, they said.

    Akhter’s body with visible injury marks was found 100 meters from her house on August 24 and a special investigation team was constituted to probe her death. “The blind murder case was solved within a week with the arrest of the husband and the mother-in-law of the deceased,” Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Mendhar, ZA Jaffri told reporters.

    He said an 11-member police team zeroed in on the accused persons who allegedly carried out the murder in a well-planned manner and also tampered with the evidence to escape arrest. Officials identified the arrested husband as constable Irfan Manhas who is posted with Indian Reserve Police Battalion in Srinagar.

    They said the couple, married with three daughters and a son, were having some family dispute. They said the accused had reached his house around midnight on August 24 and allegedly strangled his wife to death with the active support of his mother.

    He had left the house for his place of posting after dumping the body to evade suspicion, the officials said.

  • J&K cops cracking down on ‘white-collar jihadis’, term them ‘worst terrorists’

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Police is cracking down on cyber terrorists, also known as “white-collar jihadis”, as it feels that they are the “worst kind of terrorists” who remain anonymous but cause an “immeasurable” amount of damage and brainwashing of youngsters, officials said here.

    According to an assessment provided by Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Dilbag Singh, senior army officers and officials from the security establishment, there is a fear that these “white-collar jihadis” could trigger a communal clash or influence some youths by manipulating news on social media while they themselves live comfortably in faraway countries.

    The battleground is new where conventional weaponry and the fighting zones of a warren of narrow streets and forests are replaced by computers and smartphones to wage war from just about anywhere — in Kashmir or outside, safe inside their homes or out on the streets, from a nearby café or even just a convenient roadside.

    ALSO READ | Jammu & Kashmir: Gupkar alliance likely to meet on Tuesday at Farooq Abdullah’s residence

    A senior army officer termed them “white-collar jihadis” who mislead the youth and general population by peddling lies on social media and twisting the situation to suit the separatists or terrorist groups.

    The Jammu and Kashmir Police recently arrested five suspected “white-collar jihadis” who were behind a campaign to spread falsehood about the sovereignty of the country.

    They, according to the police, were tasked with preparing a strategic hit list of government officers, journalists, social activists, lawyers and political functionaries to instil fear among people.

    “A cyber terrorist is actually deadlier than an actual terrorist because first, he is in hiding and second, he is absolutely unknown — unknown till you get into certain very specific details,” DGP Singh said.

    “It is very difficult to find out those kinds of details to locate them and who is actually using that particular identity in the virtual world. People have taken advantage of anonymity in the cyber world and that is why they indulge in such kinds of activities,” he said.

    Singh has been laying special emphasis on putting a check on cyber terrorists as he feels that they are the “worst kind of terrorists (as) they are not seen but the amount of damage they do and the amount of pollution of the mind of the youth they do are immeasurable.”

    ALSO READ | ‘Terrorists frustrated with our popularity’: Jammu & Kashmir BJP chief receives terror threat

    He says they are the people who are responsible for recruitment, they are the ones who would make some sort of comments and statements on social media which would create a communal wedge between various communities, between Hindus and Muslims and others.

    “Therefore, taking care of them and hitting them is very very important so we are working on that front and achieved some success in some areas. More work and more focussed work is needed. We will continue to do whatever is needed in this regard,” Singh said recently.

    The police chief cited an encounter earlier this year in Nowgam and said suddenly there was a tweet claiming that a minority community person had given information about terrorist presence there to the security agency.

    “It was absolutely false, fraud and nonsense,” Singh said, adding the use of social media was only aimed at creating a communal divide.

    He referred to the recent cases wherein a jeweller, the son of the owner of a popular eatery and some others were targeted by terrorists and said “details suggest that these kinds of targets are picked only after some kind of misinformation is spread.”

    However, senior officials in the security establishment say that it takes a long time to trace white-collar jihadis.

    “It is like finding a needle in a haystack. Millions of people are on social networking sites and it is too difficult to locate that one person,” an official said.

    The Jammu and Kashmir Police has started registration of private citizens as volunteers to police the internet and report suspected cyber crimes to the government.

    The initiative launched in February this year provides for three categories of volunteers — ‘Unlawful Content Flaggers’, ‘Cyber Awareness Promoters’ and ‘Cyber Experts’.

    According to the police, unlawful content flaggers will play a role in “identifying online illegal/unlawful content like child pornography, rape/gang rape, terrorism, radicalization, anti-national activities.”

    Cyber awareness promoters will create awareness about cyber crime among citizens, including vulnerable groups like women, children and the elderly, rural population, while cyber experts will deal with specific domains of cyber crime, forensics, network forensics, malware analysis, memory analysis and cryptography among others.

  • Jamu and Kashmir to open purse string to woo tinsel town back

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  The verdant Valley is attempting to win back the tinsel town’s attention by lining up a whole array of sops for filmmakers. The administration on Friday approved the J&K Film Policy-2021, offering subsidy for shooting films, serials, web series and documentaries and also free security. Subsidy would also be provided for the stay of the crew in the UT.

    As per the policy, two separate appraisal committees will be constituted for giving permissions for locations and script screening. Shooting locations, crowd management, security, use of public place etc. would come under the ambit of the eight-member Location Permission Committee.

    Another five-member committee, headed by a chairman to be nominated by J&K Film Development Council, would look into script screening. Security arrangements would be made free of cost to enable filmmakers to complete shooting.

    For a filmmaker shooting first film in J&K, upto Rs 1 crore or 25% of the total Cost of Production (COP), whichever is less, will be provided by the government if a minimum 50% of the total shooting days are in J&K. Up to Rs 1.50 crore or 25% of the total COP, whichever is lower, will be given if at least 75% of the shooting days are in J&K.

  • Jammu and Kashmir to open purse string to woo tinsel town back

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  The verdant Valley is attempting to win back the tinsel town’s attention by lining up a whole array of sops for filmmakers. The administration on Friday approved the J&K Film Policy-2021, offering subsidy for shooting films, serials, web series and documentaries and also free security. Subsidy would also be provided for the stay of the crew in the UT.

    As per the policy, two separate appraisal committees will be constituted for giving permissions for locations and script screening. Shooting locations, crowd management, security, use of public place etc. would come under the ambit of the eight-member Location Permission Committee.

    Another five-member committee, headed by a chairman to be nominated by J&K Film Development Council, would look into script screening. Security arrangements would be made free of cost to enable filmmakers to complete shooting.

    For a filmmaker shooting first film in J&K, upto Rs 1 crore or 25% of the total Cost of Production (COP), whichever is less, will be provided by the government if a minimum 50% of the total shooting days are in J&K. Up to Rs 1.50 crore or 25% of the total COP, whichever is lower, will be given if at least 75% of the shooting days are in J&K.

  • Mehbooba cries foul after getting notice for violating COVID-19 norms during PDP rally

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government has served a notice to PDP chief and former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti for violating COVID-19 SOPs during the August 25 party rally in south Kashmir’s Shopian.

    “It has come to our notice that PDP president Mehbooba Mufti had called a public gathering beyond the prescribed number and beyond the prescribed time in gross violation of COVID-19 SOPs in vogue. I am serving a notice to you under Section 51(b) of the Disaster Management Act (DMA) 2005 and you are directed to explain as to why action under the relevant sections of the DMA and the Indian Penal Code may not be initiated against you for violations of the Covid appropriate behavior and SOPs,” reads the notice served to Mehbooba by Executive Magistrate Ist Class, Tehsil Shopian.

    On August 25, the PDP chief addressed the party workers and leaders in Shopian. It was attended by a large number of party workers and leaders during which Mehbooba demanded restoration of Articles 370 and 35A.

    ALSO READ: Anyone speaking against Centre put behind bars, 1200 Kashmiris still in jails: Mehbooba

    The PDP chief in her response to the official said it is strange and baffling that on the very same day, Lt Governor Manoj Sinha presided over a function attended by hundreds of people and that too indoors.

    “If COVID is indeed why this workers’ meeting was flagged in the first place, then why was not the same yardstick applied to the LG’s programme. COVID-19 virus does not discriminate but unfortunately it’s painfully obvious that this administration does. Your actions reek of bias and political space for those who disagree with the ruling party is deliberately being choked,” she stated.

    Mehbooba alleged that since her release from detention, “a clear pattern has emerged in which my public interaction programmes and movement are intentionally thwarted, cancelled or prevented. Earlier, the excuse invoked was security restrictions and now COVID-19 has become the preferred alibi used by this administration.”

    She also alleged that in the past few months, there are multiple examples of other political parties that were not only allowed to hold conventions and political gatherings, but were in fact facilitated and encouraged by the administration.