Category: Union Territory

Srinagar: Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front Muhammad Yasin Malik on Friday accused the government forces of “turning Kashmir into a killing field.” “Indian forces are killing Kashmiris at will,” he told a public gathering at Chrar-i-Sharief shrine in Budgam district after Friday prayers.

He said peace and stability depend on resolution of disputes and issues as “peace cannot be established in vacuum.”

“United Nations as a responsible forum has to rise above lip-service and play its role in resolving Kashmir and Palestine disputes,” he said.

A JKLF spokesperson said Malik went underground yesterday evening as police were out to arrest him and prevent him from reaching Chrar-i-Sharif.

He said police have arrested JKLF vice-chairman Showkat Ahmad Bakhshi and shifted him to police station Parimpora. 

“I had to go into hiding to reach here because the so-called rulers have almost imposed martial law in Kashmir where no political and even religious activity is being allowed,” Malik said.

He said today was the last Friday of this year’s Ramadhan and every Muslim was duty-bound to reach Jamia Masjid or other big places of worship for prayers.

“But the PDP-led regime, implementing RSS agenda, banned even Friday congregations and imposed curfew in most parts of Kashmir including Jamia Masjid Srinagar,” he said.

“This is enough evidence that the PDP-led ruling regime is anti-Muslim and anti-Kashmir. Kashmir has been turned into a killing field where young and old are being killed with impunity daily,” he said.

He accused New Delhi of using its military and police might to unleash “ugly oppression” against Kashmiri youth who are waging a peaceful political struggle.

“Youth in peaceful movement are being subjected to torture, arrests and humiliation, leaving them with no choice but to opt for the armed mode of resistance and now the same young boys are being targeted and killed with impunity,” he said.

He said during the 2016 uprising, more than a hundred youngsters were killed, over 1,000 blinded and thousands of others injured and imprisoned.

“This genocide is still continuing as the Indian might has not succeeded in breaking the will of common Kashmiris who have decided to resist the oppression with valor and passion,” Malik said. 

Stressing upon the need for early release of all Kashmiri prisoners, Malik said “civilised countries and nations don’t cage their opponents and suppress their voices and if India and its Kashmiri stooges claim to be democrats, they should open the doors of jails and let free those who have been languishing there for many years.”

He said it was a common practice for thegovernments to release prisoners before Eid.

“But PDP rulers under the influence of RSS Hindu fanaticism, instead of releasing inmates, are actually trying to arrest and house-arrest more people and fill jails and police stations which is highly condemnable,” Malik said.

Malik was given a rousing farewell by people in Chara-e-Sharif town.

“Thousands of people, especially the youth, enthusiastically gathered around Yasin sahib and took him on their shoulders and raised passionate slogans in favor of freedom and unity,” the JKLF spokesman said.

Police says he was on security duty, mob mistook him as a spy, assassin

Srinagar: he lynching of the DySP Mohammad Ayub Pandith during the nightlong prayers at the Grand Mosque has added a shocking new dimension to the deteriorating situation in Valley.  

The incident follows close on the heels of the killing of three militants and a civilian in an encounter in South Kashmir on Thursday. And it is the seventh death of a J&K Police man over the past week. 

On June 17, six police men including a sub-inspector were killed when  militants attacked a police team in Thajiwara Achabal of Anantnag district.  

Pandith was beaten to death when he was  posted on security duty at the Grand Mosque on the occasion of the Lailatul Qadr, the holiest night in Muslim calendar ahead of the Eid-ul Fitr. 

He was on “Access Control Duty” heading a team of police personnel in civvies, who frisked people entering the mosque, a routine security practice at big religious gatherings, police said.

“He came out of the mosque in the middle of the night to make a call, some people followed him and asked him questions,” police sources said. “They accused him of being an intelligence agent as he was reportedly clicking pictures and making videos of the worshippers. Pandith told them he was doing his routine duty that didn’t convince the angry mob”. 

The  crowd, the Police said, started hitting him. “They stripped him naked and pushed him down. With his life under threat, Pandith took out his pistol and fired in the air. But when mob refused to budge, he fired at the legs of some of the people. Three were hit,” the police sources said. “But far from running away, the mob stood its ground, now more violent. They brought rocks and threw them at him, some stones hit his head. He lost consciousness and soon died from excessive blood loss.  The body was lying there for an hour before it was removed”. 

However, witnesses contested the parts of the police version. According to them the alleged suspicious movement of Pandith around the mosque made people apprehend that he was an intelligence agent on a mission to cause some mischief.  Some thought he had come to assassinate Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, an inference that was only further reinforced when on being confronted Pandith whipped out his pistol and fired at the crowd, injuring three. 

“People there said he was from outside the state, had come to kill Mirwaiz and perhaps worked for the army,” the eye-witness Sajad Ahmad Sheikh was quoted as saying by the New York Times. 

Another witness Mushtaq Khan told the paper: “People were shouting ‘We have caught a C.I.D. man’. Then they paraded him naked, and he was beaten to death.”

Police has so far arrested two youths for having taken part in the lynching. Director General of Police  SP Vaid affirmed that the perpetrators of the atrocity “will face the law”.

“The official was killed by the mob while he was performing his duties. It’s a very sad and unfortunate incident,” he added.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti termed the lynching shameful. “Isse bada sharmnaak vakya koi ho nahin sakta(There is nothing more atrocious than this).”

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who delivered sermon on  Shab Qadr at the Grand Mosque, was also forthright in his condemnation. “Deeply disturbed and condemn the brutal act at Nowhatta. Mob violence and public lynching is outside the parameters of our values and religion,” tweeted Mirwaiz. “We cannot allow state brutality to snatch our humanity and values,” he said.

The Mirwaiz had come to the mosque to deliver his sermon past midnight. This is for the first time that a mob has lynched a person in Kashmir and is, therefore, a new low in the Kashmir situation, Kashmir observers said.

Though there have been killings of some people during protests earlier also, like the death of a passer-by after being hit by a stone last year and killing of a lecturers by beating by security forces in Pampore last year.

Social media Debate

The lynching generated outrage on social media too. “Act of stoning DySp Ayub Pandith in Nowhatta is barbaric & ghastly,” tweeted political commentator Gowhar Geelani.

“Mob lynching reaches Kashmir, I am ashamed,” tweeted one Mir Burhan.

People see the development as yet another instance of the fast deteriorating situation in Kashmir. And for many, the lynching underlines the brutalisation of Kashmiri society due to the constant exposure to extreme violence.

Srinagar: Condemning the lynching of a police officer in Srinagar, National Conference working president Omar Abdullah on Friday said the people behind the “travesty” should “burn in hell”.He said the killing of deputy superintendent of police Mohammad Ayub Pandith outside the Jamia Masjid in the downtown area of the city was height of barbarism.“I am personally anguished and devastated by this tragedy. That this happened on the most auspicious night and outside Jamia Masjid is shocking,” he said.“His death is a tragedy & the manner of his death a travesty. May the people who lynched DySP Pandith burn in hell for their sins,” Omar wrote on Twitter.Expressing shock and anguish over the “dastardly and barbaric” killing, Omar said the killing was the height of barbarism and should be condemned unequivocally by everyone.“I am personally anguished and devastated by this tragedy. That this happened on the most auspicious night and outside Jamia Masjid is shocking. Such heinous elements are the enemies of Kashmiriyat and humanity and should be given the sternest possible sentence as per the law of the land,” he said in a statement.The former chief minister of the state announced a donation of Rs 10 lakh on behalf of the party and also a month’s salary as MLA to the police welfare fund to support families of such martyrs.“We are all duty-bound to stand with the family of the martyred police officer and also the police department in this hour of mourning and grief,” the NC working president said.He demanded that the culprits be brought to book without delay and given the sternest possible punishment.On the instructions of the working president, NC’s provincial president Nasir Aslam Wani and state spokesperson Junaid Azim Mattu attended the wreath-laying ceremony of the police officer on behalf of the party and paid tributes.Mohammad Ayub Pandith, a deputy superintendent of police, was stripped naked and stoned to death by an irate mob after he allegedly opened fire at a group of people, who caught him clicking pictures near a mosque in downtown area in the early hours of Friday. PTI

Srinagar: Even as Jumat-ul-Vida was celebrated across the Kashmir valley today, the traditional fervour associated with the last Friday of the holy month of Ramazan was missing. A comparatively lesser number of people offered Friday prayers at the revered Hazratbal shrine and the Friday gathering could not be held at Jamia Masjid in the old city due to restrictions imposed by the government. Restrictions had been put in place after a Hurriyat call for post Friday prayer protest. Largest Friday prayer gatherings on Jumat-ul-Vida used to be traditionally held at the Hazratbal shrine and Jamia Masjid. However, devotees in large numbers were seen thronging most of the other mosques and shrines for Friday prayers across the Valley. During Friday sermons, religious heads threw light on the significance of Jumat-ul-Vida while bidding farewell to the fasting month. Meanwhile, Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who would deliver the Friday sermon at the Jamia Masjid, flayed the government for imposing curbs on religious gatherings. In a statement, he said, “It is for the first time in the living memory of people that they are being barred from offering Jumat-ul-Vida prayers at Jamia Masjid by the authorities.” “For the whole year Muslims of the Valley wait for offering prayers at Jamia Masjid on this most important last Friday of the holiest month of Ramazan to earn reward and seek forgiveness of their Almighty. And even that right has been snatched from us by our oppressors,” he added. (TNS)

Srinagar: Deputy Superintendent of Police Mohammed Ayub Pandith, 57, had left his Nowpora home at 8.30 pm for his night duty at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid, located three kilometres from his home. During the night, when the pictures of an unidentified man, who was lynched outside the mosque, spread on the social media and WhatsApp, the family could not recognise him. “Many in our family had seen the picture, but none could identify him,” said his cousin Mohammad Abdullah Pandit. “At 5.20 am, we were told to identify the body and everyone was in shock.” Abdullah claimed that it was for the first time after joining the police, Pandith was deployed at Jamia Masjid. The family also received a call from the police at around 3 am inquiring whether Pandith had returned home or not. As the body reached home, the family members wailed and neighbours also assembled to offer condolences. Emotional scenes were seen at his home. He was laid to rest at his native place in Nowpora. The officer is survived by wife, son Danish, who is a businessman, and daughter Sana, who is doing MBBS in Bangladesh. “Sana had arrived a few days ago to celebrate Eid and she was to leave on Tuesday,” another family member said. Pandith’s colleagues remembered him as one of the finest officers. “He was known to be one of the most decent and dedicated officer,” ADGP (Security) Dilbagh Singh said. Pandith had joined the police in 1990 as a Sub-Inspector. After completing his basic training in 1992, he was posted at Pulwama. He was promoted to the Deputy Superintendent of Police’s post in 2013 and was posted with the security wing.

Tribune News Service

Srinagar: The Kashmir valley will see another day of rain showers tomorrow as per the Meteorological department forecast, and the weather will improve from Saturday.
MeT officials told KNS that weather will improve from June 24 (Saturday).
“Tomorrow, rain showers will occur intermittently in the valley,” a Met official told KNS.
The valley has been witnessing intermittent and moderate rainfall from Tuesday, with the temperature dipping across, giving reprieve to the people in Ramdhan. (KNS)

Srinagar, June 20: Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) today said that doctors in Kashmir lack training in medical ethics.

Describing it as an essential component of patient care, President DAK Dr Nisar ul Hassan in a statement said that doctors are not taught medical ethics during their training.

Medical ethics are moral principles in the practice of medicine to which a physician has an obligation.

Kind words, compassion and empathy have an equal hand in cure as much as medical competence does.

But this need is often not met.

Patients leave hospitals dissatisfied as doctors do not spend time in talking, listening and more importantly hearing them.

They are increasedly irritated by the non-committal attitude and professional distance they encounter.

You might have healed their physical illness, but hurt in their feelings by the interpersonal treatment they receive.

A medical student only learns how to diagnose diseases, but never learns moral principles.

Any treatment can be undone in just a few moments by the physician’s wrong attitude.

Teachers have to be role models to shape the ethics of medical trainees, but students often observe them treating patients with shocking contempt.

Patients recover their health simply through their contentment with the goodness of a physician.

No matter how competent a doctor is he/she cannot be a good doctor unless he/she is a caring person.

While the subject of medical ethics is given prime importance in all medical schools of the world, but in Kashmir it is completely ignored.

As a result, there is deteriorating doctor-patient relationship and increasing conflicts between doctors and patients relatives.

Inclusion of formal ethics training in medical schools has been identified as an important step by which the need for ethical behavior can be reinforced and faith in medical profession can be revived.

AMID THE swirling unrest in the Kashmir Valley, thousands of sturdy pine trees speak for the passion and commitment of a 51-year-old man from Batamaloo in Srinagar to a cause that is far from the spotlight. Abdul Hamid Bhat’s mission is to plant trees across Kashmir, which has witnessed large-scale deforestation especially in the rural areas. Over the last nine years, says the automobile businessman, he has helped plant over one lakh trees, mostly pine, across the Valley with his own funds.

So much so, that in these parts they call him Rahim Greens, after his father Abdul Rahim who “owned a big chunk of land on the outskirts of Srinagar and always spoke about the importance of trees to the environment”.

“My passion towards trees started over a decade ago. I had an office at Barzulla where the state government had planted dozens of pine trees on the pavements and left them unattended. Initially, I used to take care of them. At the time, I used to distribute diaries and calendars to my clients and officials to promote my business. It was then that the idea struck that I should, instead, started distributing saplings. I realised that for the cost on one diary and a calendar, I could get six-seven saplings. Soon, others started encouraging me and some volunteered to help me distribute saplings,” says Bhat.

“Many people have also offered financial help, but I raise all the funds for plantation from my own business. I don’t believe in crowd-funding or taking money from the government or NGOs. Every year, I spent Rs 2-3 lakh on trees,’’ he says.

Such is his love for trees that outside his plush office at Rangreth Industrial Estate, Bhat has planted rows of pines that have changed the landscape of what is essentially a hub for manufacturing units. “I am planting trees of different varieties. I see this as a common man’s social responsibility,’’ he says.

Bhat then pulls out pictures of a large, green patch in Satheran village on the foothills of the Tosamaidan forest range in central Kashmir’s Budgam district. According to him, the deforestation here coincided with the start of militancy in 1989, when villagers felled thousands of pine and kail trees nearby and the adjacent forest.

Until a few years ago, says Bhat, many households in Satheran owned a horse and an axe and engaged in timber smuggling, which had become a lucrative trade. “After the government start tightening the noose, local volunteers and environmentalists sought my assistance. With the help of local villagers and local volunteers, I have planted more than 5,000 trees in this area. Now, all these saplings have turned into young trees,” he says.

Today, the children of those who were involved in timber smuggling in Satheran are part of Bhat’s plantation drive. “It gives me great satisfaction when I see former timber smugglers and their children helping us plant trees. Many have left smuggling and now earn their livelihood by doing other jobs,” he says.

Initially, Bhat says, he planted trees on a “small scale”. “The first massive exercise began in 2010, when I planted almost 20,000 trees in different parts of Kashmir. To reach far-off places, I took help from the National Service Scheme (NSS), local volunteers and students of different schools. Initially, I used to get pine trees from the Forest department for Rs 2 each and chinar free of cost, now the rates have touched Rs 15 and it takes another Rs 15 for transportation and other expenses for each sapling,’’ he says.

In some villages, Bhat has distributed walnut trees to help the local economy. “Walnut trees are not only good for the environment but also generate good money once they mature,” he says.

According to Bhat, the consequences of deforestation in Kashmir have been disastrous.

“It was due to heavy deforestation in the upper reaches that the Kashmir had to face massive floods in 2014. Earlier, it used to take days for rain water to reach Srinagar, but after deforestation, the water fills our big rivers and water bodies within eight or nine hours. A good plantation in the upper reaches can save us from this natural disaster and environmental problems,’’ he says.

And so, between April and May every year, he is busy chalking out programmes with local schools and volunteers for his plantation drive. “My motto is to educate the new generation about the environment. I prefer plantation drives with students because for them, these trees become personal souvenirs,” says Bhat, a school dropout.

As for Bhat, the biggest joy is to find a sapling planted by him turn into a fully grown tree. “After planting trees, I return to those locations to see them. Now, I even see trees in my dreams,’’ he says.