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Pulwama, February 18: Two militants have been killed and another army man succumbed to injuries in the gunfight raging in Pinglena area of Pulwama district taking the death toll to eight. Officials told KNO that the bodies of two militants have been recovered but firing continues. “We believe there are more militants hiding in the area. We have also lost another soldier, he succumbed to injuries,” an official said.

Earlier four army men were killed including a Major ranking officer. A civilian as well has died in the gunfight between militants and government forces in Pinglan area of South Kashmir that erupted in the intervening night.

The operation, according to officials, is going on.Reports reaching KNO said that four army men who were critically injured and were evacuated to hospital have succumbed to injuries.”The killed personnel include a Major ranking officer as well, ” sources said.

The civilian killed in the exchange of fire has been identified as Mushtaq Ahmad. A police source told KNO that Ahmad died in the exchange of fire between two sides. Official told KNO that there was a brief exchange of fire at around 1 am.

Earlier, joint team of army’s 55RR,CRPF 182 BN, 183BN and SOG Pulwama launched cordon and search operation in Pinglan area after having credible input about presence of some militants in the area.
As the joint team of forces approached the suspected spot the hiding militants fired upon government forces triggering an encounter. (KNO)

Chennai: Actor-turn-Politician, Kamal Haasan suggested to conduct a plebiscite to resolve Kashmir issue. Expressing his views on Army, he said, “I truly regret when people say army men are going to Kashmir to die”. He questioned, “Why should an army man die?”

He held politicians of both the countries responsible for the death of soldiers. He suggested ‘plebiscite’ and questioned, “Why have they not conducted it?”

He recalled that in his magazine he had predicted this situation to arise and regretted that he should have predicted something else.

Islamabad: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Sunday signed a slew of investment agreements worth USD 20 billion as the Crown Prince landed in the country for a two day visit.

At a ceremony in the Prime Minister House, Pakistan and Saudi officials signed MoUs for bilateral cooperation in a number of areas a process overseen by Pakistan premier Imran Khan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

“Today we signed MoUs. The amount of that kind of investment is USD 20 billion. It is big for phase one and definitely it (Saudi investment in Pakistan) will grow every month, every year in bigger numbers and it will be beneficial for both the countries,” the crown prince said.

“Pakistan is going to be very, very important country in the future and we want to be sure we are part of that,” he added.

Seven agreements, including MoUs in power, petrochemical and mining sectors, were inked as Prince Salman launched his diplomatic trip to Asia in Islamabad.

After Pakistan, the crown prince will travel to India, where he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

He is expected to finish the trip with a visit to China on Thursday and Friday.

Prince Salman said Saudi “cannot say no to Pakistan, whatever you (Pakistan) want we will do.”

“For Pakistanis, this is a great day,” the Pakistani premier said while addressing a dinner reception held in honour of the visiting Saudi guests at the PM House.

He said Saudi Arabia has always been there when Pakistan needed friends. “I want to thank you for the way you helped us when we were in (a) bad situation,” Khan told the royal guest, adding that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia were now taking their relationship to a new level, where investment agreements would be mutually beneficial for the countries.

“The future is exciting for both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia after joining hands,” he said.

Pulwama, February 18 : Four army men have been killed including a Major ranking officer. A civilian as well has died in the gunfight between militants and government forces in Pinglan area of South Kashmir that erupted in the intervening night.The operation, according to officials, is going on.

Reports reaching KNO said that four army men who were critically injured and were evacuated to hospital have succumbed to injuries.”The killed personnel include a Major ranking officer as well, ” sources said.

The civilian killed in the exchange of fire has been identified as Mushtaq Ahmad. A police source told KNO that Ahmad died in the exchange of fire between two sides. Official told KNO that there was a brief exchange of fire at around 1 am and from then no new contact have been established. Whole area is under cordon and search operation is going on.

Earlier, joint team of army’s 55RR,CRPF 182 BN, 183BN and SOG Pulwama launched cordon and search operation in Pinglan area after having credible input about presence of some militants in the area.
As the joint team of forces approached the suspected spot the hiding militants fired upon government forces triggering an encounter.(KNO)

Srinagar, February 18: Four armymen including an officer were killed and a soldier was injured in a gunfight at Pinglena area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Monday.

Reports reaching GNS said that a joint team of army’s 55 RR, CRPF and SOG launched a cordon wee hours today.

A police offcial told GNS that the cordon was laid in the area following credible inputs about the presence of some militants.

As the joint team of forces intensified the searches and fired some warning shots towards the suspected spot, the militants opened fire triggering off a gunfight, he said.

During the course of gunfight, four army soldiers including a Major were killed.

The officer identified the slain soldiers as Major DS Dondial, Head Constable Save Ram, Sepoy Ajay Kumar and Seooy Hari Singh.

“The critically injured armyman has been identified as Sepoy Gulzar Mohd who has been evacuated to army’s 92 base hospital Badamibagh Srinagar for treatment”.

A civilian namely Mushtaq Ahmad is said to have received critical wounds during the exchange of gunfight, he said.

When reports last came in, the searches were going on in the area to trace out the militants. (GNS)

Pulwama, February 18 : Four army men have been critically injured in the nocturnal encounter between militants and government forces in Pinglan area of South Kashmir on Monday.

The operation, according to officials, is going on. Reports reaching KNO said that four army men are critically injured and have been evacuated to hospital. .

Official told KNO that there was a brief exchange of fire at around 1 am and from then no new contact have been established. Whole area is under cordon and search operation is going on.

Earlier, joint team of army’s 55RR,CRPF 182 BN, 183BN and SOG Pulwama launched cordon and search operation in Pinglan area after having credible input about presence of some militants in the area.

As the joint team of forces approached the suspected spot the hiding militants fired upon government forces triggering an encounter. (KNO)

KOCHI: Attempt by the armed forces to avenge the death of 40 jawans in the Pulwama attack will lead to more bloodshed and trigger a new cycle of militancy, warned retired Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju. “Lot of jingoism is going on in the name of Pulwama attack. I condemn the attack. But any attempt to avenge the massacre will end up in the slaughter of unarmed Kashmiri civilians. Kashmiri s are bitterly hostile to India. The suicide bomber has died and the perpetrators who helped him have vanished.

The army may go to a village, catch hold of a few unarmed civilians and kill them. This will only help to aggravate the situation. The relatives of dead will take to militancy and you will be converting non-militants into militants. If wisdom doesn’t dawn, you will have more body bags arriving,” he said `at a press conference in Kochi on Saturday.

Almost the entire Kashmir population has been alienated from India due to the stupidity of our political leaders for decades, he said.“As a Kashmiri I know the mood in the valley. The militants may be only a few hundred. But most of the Kashmiris sympathise with them. After conducting an attack, the militants melt away among the population and the people there give them shelter, food and intelligence information. Any attempt to avenge the death will lead to a Vietnam-like situation. The only solution is reunification of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh under a secular government,” Katju said.

‘Courts should not intervene in matters of faith’

Katju said courts should not intervene in matters of faith as it will lead to chaos and communal riots.
“Religion is not a matter of reason. I am an atheist and I believe that all religions are false and superstitious. But most people are religious and we should respect them. The Ayyappa devotees believe that Ayyappa is a naishthik brahmachari and he does not like menstruating women visiting the temple. It is a matter of faith and you cannot question it. The judges who delivered the verdict have no knowledge about the realities of this country. It is not proper for the courts to interfere in matters of faith,” he said. According to him, the correct judgement is that of Indu Malhotra.

Srinagar: Former Jamu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah Sunday said that attacking and terrorising people of Kashmiri origin outside J&K will lead to their further alienation of the people of the state from India.

In a series of tweets, Omar also called for the safety of Kashmiris living or studying outside the state.

“Our enemies and those who back terrorism in J&K have been trying to drive this wedge so please please let’s not do their job for them. Kashmir isn’t just a piece of land it’s the people that inhabit it.

“Those hotheads that make up the mobs doing this damage need to ask themselves (if they have the mental bandwidth) whose purpose is served by ostracising Kashmiris.

“By attacking them, terrorising them and forcing them to find shelter they are being told there is no place for them outside the valley & no future in the mainland.”

SRINAGAR: BJP leader Mangal Prabhat Lodha demanded that the Article 370 should be removed in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) to connect with the people of J&K with mainstream of India; so that the people of Kashmir do not feel themselves separate and disconnected from India. Lodha has written a letter in connection with this issue to the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi.

The union government should announce a special package for Jammu and Kashmir so that the youth of J&K would get new opportunities in their own state, senior BJP MLA urged to PM.

According to Lodha, it is the need of the hour for Jammu and Kashmir. He wrote, “You are in favour of taking many strong decisions and this has been proved by your many past decisions. Therefore, I demand the removal of the Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir. A special package should be announced for trade and industrial development in the state in order to people of Kashmir be remained connected with the nation.”

In his letter, he further said that in this hour of grief, the entire the country is with the Prime Minister. This has been evident in last two days after the attack. It has also been proved that the country is very capable under your leadership and it can take up any kind of challenges. He also urged the PM that this decision would be in the interest of the people of the country, especially people of J&K, who would get justice.