Srinagar, Aug 22: The sign board of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat at its head office at Syed Ali Geelani’s office-cum-residence in Hyderpora area of Srinagar, has been removed on Sunday evening.
Eyewitnesses told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the official sign board has been removed from the TeH’s office this evening by Geelani’s domestic workers.
However, it was not immediately known as to why the board has been removed—(KNO)
Srinagar, Aug 22: A ban under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act may be imposed on both factions of the secessionist conglomerate Hurriyat Conference which has been spearheading the separatist movement in Jammu and Kashmir for over two decades, officials said.
They said a recent probe into the granting of MBBS seats to Kashmiri students by institutions in Pakistan indicates that the money collected from aspirants by some organisations which were part of the Hurriyat Conference conglomerate was being used for funding terror organisations in the union territory.
The officials said both the factions of the Hurriyat are likely to be banned under Section 3(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or the UAPA, under which “if the Central Government is of opinion that any association is, or has become, an unlawful association, it may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare such association to be unlawful.”
They said the proposal was mooted in accordance with the Centre”s policy of zero tolerance against terrorism.
The Hurriyat Conference came into existence in 1993 with 26 groups, including some pro-Pakistan and banned outfits such as the Jamaat-e-Islami, JKLF and the Dukhtaran-e-Millat. It also included the People”s Conference and the Awami Action Committee headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq.
The separatist conglomerate broke into two factions in 2005 with the moderate group being led by the Mirwaiz and the hard-line headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
So far, the Centre has banned the Jamaat-e-Islami and the JKLF under the UAPA. The ban was imposed in 2019.
The officials said a probe into funding of terror groups indicated alleged involvement of secessionist and separatist leaders, including the members and cadres of the Hurriyat Conference who have been acting in connivance with active militants of proscribed militant organisations Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
The cadres raised funds in the country and from abroad through various illegal channels, including hawala, for funding separatist and terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir, they said.
The funds collected were used for causing disruption in the Kashmir Valley by way of pelting stones on security forces, systematically burning schools, damaging public property and waging war against India as part of a criminal conspiracy, they claimed.
Supporting the case for banning the two factions of the Hurriyat Conference under the UAPA, the officials cited several cases related to terror funding, including the one being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in which several of the conglomerate”s cadres were arrested and jailed.
Many of the second-rung cadres of both the factions are in jail since 2017, they said.
Among those in jail are Altaf Ahmed Shah, the son-in-law of Geelani; businessman Zahoor Ahmed Watali; Geelani”s close aide Ayaz Akbar, who is also the spokesperson of the hardline separatist organisation Tehreek-e-Hurriyat; Peer Saifullah; Shahid-ul-Islam, spokesperson of the moderate Hurriyat Conference; Mehrajuddin Kalwal; Nayeem Khan; and Farooq Ahmed Dar alias ”Bitta Karate”.
Later, JKLF chief Yaseen Malik, DeM head Asiya Andrabi and pro-Pakistan separatist Masarat Alam were also named in a supplementary charge sheet in a case of terror financing.
Another case which is likely to be cited for banning the two Hurriyat Conference factions is the one against PDP youth leader Waheed-ur-Rahman Parra, who is alleged to have paid Rs 5 crore to the son-in-law of Geelani for keeping Kashmir in turmoil after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen terror commander Burhan Wani in 2016, the officials said.
The NIA has alleged that after the death of Wani, who was killed in an encounter with the Army in July 2016, Parra got in touch with Altaf Ahmad Shah, alias Altaf Fantoosh, and asked him to ensure that the Valley was kept on the boil with widespread unrest and stone pelting.
Also, the Counter Intelligence (Kashmir), a branch of CID department of Jammu and Kashmir Police, registered a case in July last year following information that several unscrupulous persons, including some Hurriyat leaders, were hand in glove with some educational consultancies and are selling Pakistan-based MBBS seats and admission in other professional courses in various colleges and universities.
At least four persons, including Mohammad Akbar Bhat alias Zaffar Bhat, self-styled chairman of Salvation Movement which is part of moderate Hurriyat Conference, were arrested in this case.
It is alleged that the constituents of Hurriyat Conference were “selling” MBBS seats in Pakistan to Kashmiri students and using the money collected, at least partly, to support and fund terrorism.
During the probe, it had surfaced that individual Hurriyat leaders had their quota of seats which were sold to people desiring to obtain MBBS and other professional degrees in one way or the other, the officials said.
The officials said evidence showed that the money was “put into channels that ended up in supporting programmes and projects pertaining to terrorism and separatism like payment for organising stone pelting.”
Citing investigation, the officials said that average cost of an MBBS seat in Pakistan was anything between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh. In some cases, the fee was brought down on the intervention of Hurriyat leaders. Depending upon the political heft of the Hurriyat leader who intervened, concessions were extended to aspiring students, the officials said.—(PTI)
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the UK’s diplomatic efforts to find a solution in Afghanistan remain ongoing, which leaves open the prospect of working with the Taliban “if necessary”.
Speaking to the media after an emergency Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms (COBRA) meeting to discuss the crisis in the region on Friday, Johnson said “formidable” challenges remain around the evacuation of British nationals and supporters from Kabul airport but the situation was getting “slightly better”.
“What I want to assure people is that our political and diplomatic efforts to find a solution for Afghanistan, working with the Taliban, of course if necessary, will go on and our commitment to Afghanistan is lasting,” Johnson said.
“The situation is getting slightly better and we are seeing a stablisation at the airport. So yesterday [Thursday] we were able to get out about 1,000 people and today [Friday] another 1,000 people; a lot of those UK eligible persons coming back to this country and a lot of them people coming back under the Afghanistan Resettlement and Assistance Programme (ARAP) interpreters and others to whom we owe debts of gratitude and honour,” he said, adding that the operation will continue at a fast pace.
“So the operation is becoming faster, but I’m not going to pretend that it’s easy. The logistical challenges are formidable and they are doing an outstanding job in very difficult circumstances,” he said.
Johnson also defended his Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, who has come under fire from the Opposition over a missed phone call with his Afghan counterpart in the now fallen Ashraf Ghani government at the peak of the crisis last weekend.
Pressed on whether he believed suggestions from the new Taliban regime in charge that it may be more moderate in the future, Johnson said that it was important to take “people at face value”.
“We hope they mean what they say. But again, as I said in the House of Commons, and I think that this is the position of everybody from the President of the United States, President Macron of France, [German Chancellor] Angela Merkel, everybody that I talked to everybody is agreed that we will judge them on their actions, and that is the important thing,” he said.
Since last Saturday, the UK says has evacuated 1,615 people, including 399 British nationals and their dependants, 320 embassy staff, and 402 Afghan nationals who worked for the UK government in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the government has announced 5 million pounds for local councils in England, Scotland and Wales offering to house Afghans who have arrived under the ARAP programme.
Under the scheme, Afghans who face threats from the Taliban having worked for the UK in Afghanistan, have been allowed to come to Britain. PTI
Srinagar, Aug 21: Jammu and Kashmir government on Saturday accorded sanction to the grant of 25 Kanals of land at Panthachowk to Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) for construction of Office and Yatri Niwas on “lease basis” for a period of 40 years from the date of taking over the possession.
As per an order by the Revenue department, Board has been granted land on payment of nominal ground rent of Rs. 10/- per kanal per annum without charge of any premium subject to the condition that the land shall be used only for the purpose for which it is granted.
“The allotment/lease shall be governed under the J&K Land Grants Act 1960 and the rules made thereunder,” reads an order, a copy of which lies with GNS, adding, “The Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar shall sign the lease agreement on behalf of the Government.”
Earlier this month, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said the new facility would be built at Pantha Chowk Srinagar in a period of 18 months. The Yatri Niwas once completed would accommodate more than 3000 pilgrims.
Sinha, who is also the Chairman of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, had said that the prestigious project is aimed at ensuring comfortable stay of Shri Amarnathji Yatris at Srinagar who come from all over the world for the holy annual pilgrimage.
“It will also act as an Information Centre for the guidance of pilgrims, besides many similar works would be completed for smooth conduct of the yatra,” he had added.
The government of J&K, he said, is initiating various services, along with the infrastructural development to provide a memorable experience to millions of devotees of Shri Amarnathji.
“We are planning to construct Yatri Niwas in various parts of the UT, besides a permanent office and a bigger Yatri Niwas will soon come up at Jammu to facilitate a large number of visiting devotees. Another Yatri Niwas with the capacity to accommodate 3200 yatris is coming up at Chanderkote, District Ramban, he had said.
“With modern facilities and conducive environment being created, the day is not far when the Yatris visiting Shri Amarnathji shrine would cross the 10 lakh mark which will also make a greater impact on the economy of J&K,” Sinha had added. (GNS)
The Union Home Secretary, Ajay Kumar Bhalla, today chaired a high-level meeting to review the celebrations under Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav to celebrate 75 years of India’s Independence across the Union territories.
The Chief Secretary, J&K, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta, along with Chief Secretaries of other Union territories participated in the meeting. Administrative Secretaries of departments of Home, General Administration, Culture and Youth Services & Sports were also present in the meeting.
The Chief Secretary, J&K, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta informed about the unprecedented Independence Day celebrations in Jammu and Kashmir this year which saw participation on approximately 10 lakh youth from 28,000 institutions. He also spoke about unfurling of 100 feet flag at Hari Parbat, overseeing the Srinagar city.
Dr. Mehta informed that to showcase region-specific accomplishments since 1947 and to promote purposeful engagement of the youth in J&K, a week-long festival will be organized under Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav. During this festival, the magic of Jammu and Kashmir will be recreated through houseboat and water sports festivals in Dal, Wular, Manasbal, Surinsar, and Mansar lakes as well as in Ranjit Sagar Dam.
Additionally, events to revive the rich cultural traditions and heritage of the Union territory will also be organized. To mark the celebrations of 75 years of Independence, 75 Sufi and Heritage sites will be developed, besides naming 75 roads, and 75 schools after the local unsung heroes.
Overall, J&K will be organizing a campaign of 75 activities with 75 events each for the next 365 days. A 3-month tourism festival in both Jammu and Kashmir will also be organized to promote tourism activities in the Union territory. Through various events, opportunities will be created for the participation of 17.5 lakh people, thus making the celebrations ‘Jan Utsav, Jan ke Dwara’.
The Union Home Secretary while appreciating the celebrations underway in Jammu & Kashmir asked for proper documentation of activities and their consolidation on the ‘MyGov’ portal.
Srinagar, Aug 21: A wanted Jaish-e-Muhammad commander and his two associates were killed in an encounter at Nagbaeran forest area of Tral hamlet in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, police said Saturday.
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A police official told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that a joint teams of Police, Army’s 42 RR and CRPF launched a Cordon and Search Operation (CASO) on a specific information about the presence of militants in Khrew, Pampore area.
The official said that as the joint teams of forces approached towards the suspected house, the hiding militants opened fire, which was retaliated, after which heavy exchange of gunfire took place.
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In the ensuing gunfight three militants were killed which includes Wakeel Shah a resident of Tral, who was part of recently issued top ten militants list of J&K while as identification of other two is being ascertained.
He said that Wakeel was involved in killing of Chairman MC Tral Rakesh Pandita and many others.
In a statement to KNO, a police spokesman said that on a specific input generated by Awantipora Police regarding presence of a group of JeM militants in the upper reaches of forest area of Nagaberan Dhoka area of Tral, a joint cordon and search operation was launched by Police and Army (42RR) in the said area.
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“During the search operation, the hiding militants fired on the joint search party, which was retaliated leading to an encounter. In the ensuing encounter, three militants of JeM were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter. One of the killed militants has been identified as Wakeel Ahmad Shah son of Muzaffar Ahmad Shah resident of Bagandar Tral. However, the identification of other two killed militants is being ascertained,” he said.
As per police records, the killed Wakeel Shah was a categorized militant and figured among the list of most wanted militants operating in the valley, the police said.
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Addressing a press conference at South Kashmir based Victor Force headquarters, the Inspector General of Police Kashmir range Vijay Kumar said that Wakeel Shah of Jaish-e-Muhammad was involved in the killing of BJP leader Rakesh Pandita and an SPO. “The identity of two other slain is being ascertained,” he said, adding that Wakil was one of the most wanted militants of JeM in “police hit list”.
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Speaking on the occasion, General officer Commanding of South Kashmir based Victor Force said that yesterday (Friday), an information was received by the 42 RR after which the army along with police launched a search operation in Tarsar-Marsar area of Tral in Pulwama district. “Today morning, a contact was established and three militants were killed in a close battle,” he said. “The trio were active for a long time in South Kashmir.” He said that two Ak-47 rifles, one SLR, magazines and a UBGL were recovered from the slain militants. “Militants who are taking refuge in woods will be tracked down and killed,” he said—(KNO)
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Srinagar, Aug 21: A Kashmiri truck driver and conductor were allegedly beaten by unknown people in Damtal area of Himachal Pradesh for having “Islam Zindabaad” written on their vehicle.
Fayaz Ahmad, owner of the vehicle, said that his driver namely Rayees Ahmad and conductor Salman Dar, both residents of Watrad village in Khansahib hamlet of Budgam district were allegedly beaten by unknown persons on Friday evening.
Fayaz said that while they were unloading at the cardboard factory in Hamtal, unknown persons came and started beating them ruthlessly and despite 60 persons present at the factory, “nobody intervened”.
He said that the goons were continuously questioning them about the “Islam Zindabaad” written on their vehicle.
“Despite contacting the authorities of the factory, nobody came to their rescue,” Fayaz said.
“What is wrong in writing Islam Zindabaad on vehicle as hundreds of non- local drivers visit Kashmir on daily and had written different things in praise of their religion but nobody questions them here,” he said.
The victims demanded that the matter must be investigated and also the CCTV footage must be checked to book the culprits.
“If we have committed any mistake we are ready to face any punishment. But if we are not guilty then the involved person must be dealt strictly as per the law,” they said—(KNO)
Jammu and Kashmir BJP chief Ravinder Raina lashed out at Mehbooba Mufti over her comments. “India is a strong nation. Our Prime Minister is Narendra Modi and not Joe Biden. We will eliminate all terrorists,” he said.
“Mehbooba Mufti is a traitor. She is indulging in sedition. She has insulted the people of the J&K who are patriots. Mehbooba wants Taliban rule in Jammu and Kashmir. But our government will wipe out terror in Jammu and Kashmir,” the BJP leader added.
ttacking Mufti, BJP leader Nirmal Singh called her desperate and frustrated as she has lost political ground.
“If she thinks that she can blackmail us then she needs to understand that this is Modi’s India. Those days are gone and we will not be blackmailed,” he added.
People who give such statements have some malicious intentions, said Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
“Yesterday, PM has said that tolerance is our culture and tradition but zero-tolerance against terrorism is our resolution. With that resolution, India and its people are going forward. People who give such statements have some malicious intentions,” he added.
After being released from detention in October last year, Mufti has repeatedly urged the Union government to hold talks with Pakistan.
The former Jammu and Kashmir CM also urged the Taliban to not commit violence against Afghan people.
“The world is now watching their behaviour. I urge the Taliban no to commit any act that goes against Afghan people. I urge them to not do anything that will force the world to go against them. Role of guns is over in the Taliban and the world community is watching how they behave with the people,” she said.
( Courtesy India Today )
Kolkata, Aug 21: Former Army chief Gen Shankar Roychowdhury said the government needs to step up outreach in Kashmir and reassure people there that India will continue to be a secular democracy as the Taliban victory in Afghanistan is likely to see a renewed offensive by Pakistan-based militants.
The retired General, who had commanded 16 corps in Kashmir at the height of militancy in that state in early 1990s, and became Army chief later in the same decade when Taliban last came to rule over Kabul, believes that Pakistan, re-enforced by the recent Taliban victory, “will make a fresh bid on Kashmir” using groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed.
He also said that India needs to reach out to both former Afghan government forces rallying around Ahmad Massoud, son of the late legendary anti-Taliban commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, in Panjshir Valley, as well as to factions within the Taliban which are friendlier to India.
“We have to step up our outreach to Kashmiris, we also have to re-assure them that India will continue to be a secular democracy,” General Roychowdhury who currently heads a strategic think tank Research Centre for Eastern and Northeastern Studies, told PTI in an interview.
The central government had scrapped Article 370 and turned Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh into two separate union territories from being a single state, while placing most Kashmiri leaders under detention. Since then, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tried to reach out and hold talks with Kashmir’s political leaders earlier this year.
“We need to understand that the victory in Afghanistan is being seen (by terror groups) as a Pakistani victory and an Indian defeat…. We have to organise ourselves for a renewed offensive by elements like the JeM,” said Gen Roychowdhury, a veteran of the 1965 and 1971 wars besides counter-insurgency operations within the country.
“We have to be prepared for Pakistani intentions (covert operations) supported by radical elements here,” he added.
During the period Taliban rode to power in the mid-1990s, India steadfastly refused to do business with the regime which it saw as brutal proxy for Pakistan’s military. It continued to support the remnants of the Afghan government and later the Northern Alliance, aiding them with training and supplies.
The 1999 hijacking of Indian airlines’ jetliner to Kabul by four Pakistani militants, was made possible with the cooperation of the Taliban regime. India exchanged three top militants, who included Maulana Masood Azhar, founder of JeM, for passengers and crew of that aircraft.
A study by French think-tank Centre d’ analyse du terrorisme (Centre for Analysis of Militancy) published last week warned of the renewed possibility of “more operational coordination between Pakistan-supported groups like the Lashkar e Toiba and JeM (on the one hand) and the Taliban.”
The former Army chief said, “We should try and help the son of Ahmad Shah Masood (guerrilla leader nicknamed Lion of Panjshir). The non-Pashtun minorities such as Tajiks, Uzbeks and Hazaras have had good relations with us…. Taliban too has many factions and it should not be difficult to reach out to them.”
General Roychowdhury also said India’s role in Afghanistan needs to be to give training, relief materials and above all refuge to those who needed it. “People of Afghanistan remain our friends and we must be willing to give them refuge,” he said.
However, at the same time, there is need to beef up security and create “fortress India” to safeguard against any militant operations against India.
The former Army chief said talk of sending Indian troops to beef up US and allied troops in holding Afghanistan which had cropped up in the last two decades “was unwise as we (Indian Army) had no means to reinforce or supply them except by air and that route was fraught with grave danger.”
He also warned that while Prime Minister Modi and Bangladesh premier Sheikh Hasina were on good terms, opposition forces in Bangladesh which included “the entire radical set-up” would be re-invigorated by the Taliban victory and “may not let this chance slip by.”
There has been disquiet in India’s security community about the possibility of Jamaat-Ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh drawing upon released Bangladeshi Taliban fighters and increasing their activities in that country and in bordering Indian states.
The retired general also said, “We need to reach out to like-minded people in this sub-continent to oppose the spread of the ideology associated with the Taliban.”—(PTI)
Srinagar, Aug 21: In context with Taliban, Inspector General of Police Vijay Kumar on Saturday said that police and security forces will professionally handle any threat.
Responding to a question on Taliban during a presser conference addressed jointly by him and GOC Victor Force here, the top police officer of Kashmir said: “As far as Taliban is concerned, I will not talk and those who are authorized to speak will talk about it.
However speaking as police officer, if any (militant) comes here, my job is to collect information and launch operation along with army to neutralize the threat. Any future challenge will handle in professional manner. We are completely alert.”
He said public corporation will be sought. “If any element, any (militant), suicide bomber etc plans anything, we will look for information from locals. If any incident happens, the locals will be affected as tourists will fear from visiting here. Whose economy will get affected? It will be local and as such I will ask locals to share information.”
Responding to question on attempts foiled regarding suicide bombings, he said, “Police and security forces will continue to work hard and foil attempts made by motivating the youth. We will continue to be in touch with parents and continue to work hard to foil any such attempts timely as were done recently.”
Asked about the use of sophisticated weapons by militants as depicted by the recovery of RPG launcher from the militant, Usman Bhai, killed in a gunfight along Jammu-Srinagar highway near Kulgam, the officer, as per GNS, said: “There are no reports about such weapons in hinterland. Last time a pika gun was recovered from an encounter site. If such weapons are in forest area, we are activating information gathering. We are alert. Also counter-infiltration grid has been activated.”
Divulging details regarding gunfight in upper reaches of Tral, he said three militants were killed.
He said that one among the militants was Wakeel Shah who is said was involved in the killing of BJP leader Rakesh Pandit at Tral on June 2 this year.
He said that militants after killing civilians and politicians take refuge in forests.
He said police and the army is activating human intelligence in the forest area also and militants will be “tracked down not only in the hinterland only but also in the woods.”
GoC Victor Force said that the Tral operation was difficult one and the forces targeted the militants from close range after zeroing in on them.
He said two AK-47 rifles, one SLR and other warlike stores have been recovered from them.
Army in a statement said that Saifullah alias Lamboo, “involved in Pulwama attack”, was also killed in the same area on 31 July this year. (GNS)