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New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s planned visit to Ladakh on Friday has been rescheduled, official sources said on Thursday.

It was not immediately known why the visit has been postponed.

The sources said Singh will “soon” undertake the visit to Ladakh to take stock of India’s military preparedness in the region where Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a seven-week bitter border standoff.

The defence minister was to be accompanied by Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravane.

The Army Chief visited Ladakh on June 23 and 24 during which he held a series of meetings with senior Army officials and visited various forward areas in eastern Ladakh.

The Indian and Chinese armies are locked in a bitter standoff in multiple locations in eastern Ladakh for the last seven weeks. The tension escalated manifold after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a violent clash in Galwan Valley on June 15.

The Chinese side also suffered casualties but it is yet to give out the details.

Srinagar: Kashmir has seen at least 229 killings during more than 100 military operations since January, a rights group said.

The Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) and Association of Disappeared Persons (APDP) in their bi-annual report has siad that from January 1 to June 30, the Jammu Kashmir witnessed the killings of at least 32 civilians and 54 armed forces personnel.

It also saw 55 internet shutdowns and the destruction of 48 structures, it said.

The report a copy of which lies with news agency KNT said three children and two women were also killed, while at least “107 cordon and search operations and cordon and destroy operations were conducted in the region”.

In addition, during search operations and encounters, “vandalism and destruction of civilian properties were reported”.

The report said that in the first six months of 2020, the media continued to be at the receiving end of pressure, intimidation and harassment by authorities, with several incidents involving the beating of journalists.

“Besides physical assaults, a few Kashmir-based journalists were also booked under stringent charges and cases were filed against them,” it said.

The report noted that the police filed cases against two Kashmiri journalists under the Unlawful Activities Act, which clearly infringes on the right to freedom of expression and freedom of the press as “such tactics signal a forewarning for media personnel to adhere to the state narrative”.

It also said that high speed mobile internet services have remained banned since August 5, 2019, noting that in the last six months, there were 55 instances of internet blockades.

The report said India is paving the way for demographic change in Kashmir on a large scale, thus institutionalizing a system of domination over indigenous populations.

“The order is a clear violation of the 4th Geneva Convention,” it noted.

The report cited observers as warning that the new domicile law could permanently alter the demography of the region. It also touched on the recently introduced new media policy wherein the government will examine the content of the media.

According to the policy, the government will decide what is “fake,” “unethical” or “anti-national” news and take legal action against the journalist or media organization concerned, including sharing information with security agencies.

The JKCCS’s report said that after the first case of the novel Coronavirus was declared in the region in March, the local government clamped down with restrictions and curfews, even when people had already been locked up since August 2019.

It said roads were barricaded while surveillance tools were used to track down people.

“Until April 16, around 2,303 people were also arrested in the region for defying lockdown orders while many shops were sealed and vehicles seized in the region,” it said.

The report also said that 345 prisoners were released amid the pandemic, but many prisoners are still being held in Indian jails, giving the example of J&K High Court Bar Association President Mian Abdul Qayoom, who has been detained since August 5, 2019.

It said during the Covid-19 crisis, many doctors in the region have been harassed and beaten by government forces while performing their duties. (KNT)

India-China Border Tensions Intensify As PLA Troops Occupy Heights, Build Fortifications & Install An ‘Enormous Signage’

New Delhi: After physically occupying an almost 8-km stretch of what India considers its territory on the north bank of Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has now created a massive signage in the area to claim it as Chinese land.

Located between Finger-4 and Finger-5, the 80-metre-long signage is in the shape of inscriptions and is designed to be visible from the air and capable of being picked up by satellites. It consists of the Mandarin symbol meaning China with a map of the country. It seeks to deride India’s claim that the Line of Actual Control (LAC) runs north to south at Finger-8.

“It clearly shows the PLA has no intention of leaving the area any time soon. We, too, have counter-mobilised with additional Army and ITBP troops in the area since May for any eventuality. We want restoration of status quo ante, with the PLA pulling back to its original position,” an official said here.

PLA soldiers have built dozens of fortifications, prefabricated huts, bunkers and pill-boxes after occupying the ‘Finger-4 to 8’ (mountainous spurs separated by a distance of 8 km) area on the north bank of Pangong Tso in a massive consolidation since early-May. They have also taken control of the nearby heights and ridgeline to dominate the area, as was earlier reported by TOI.

Indian soldiers, with an ITBP post located between Finger-3 and 4, have for long been patrolling west to east till Finger-8.

The PLA, which has also strengthened its positions on the south bank of the lake, wants Indian soldiers to retreat to the Finger-2 area. Ever since the clash between the rival troops in the area on May 5-6, Chinese soldiers have effectively blocked all Indian patrols from the Finger-4 to 8 area.

With inputs from TOI; EurAsian Times

Jammu & Kashmir Bank has slipped into the red, reporting a standalone net loss of ₹294 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2020, against a net profit of ₹215 crore in the year-ago quarter.

The bank, which is majority owned by the Government of the Union Territory of J&K, had reported a standalone net profit of ₹50 crore in the quarter ended December 31, 2019.

For FY20, J&K Bank reported a standalone net loss of ₹1,139 crore, against a net profit of ₹465 crore in FY19.

Net interest income (difference between interest earned and interest expended) in Q4 increased 6 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to ₹987 crore (₹931 crore in the year-ago quarter). Other income, comprising commission/exchange, profit on sale of investments, recovery in written-off accounts and profit on exchange transactions, was sharply down 70 per cent YoY at ₹121 crore (₹404 crore).

Operating profit before provisions and contingencies was down 36 per cent at ₹382 crore (₹601 crore).

Provisions

Loan loss provisions increased by 30 per cent YoY to ₹586 crore (₹450 crore).

As per the notes to accounts, J&K Bank extended the moratorium on advance accounts aggregating ₹10,290 crore, which were in the special mention account (SMA)/overdue category as on March 1, 2020. Further, the bank has extended the benefit of asset classification in advance accounts having outstanding of ₹2,948.54 crore and has made a provision of ₹147.50 crore (at the rate of 5 per cent) on these advances during the current quarter.

Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) declined to 10.97 per cent of gross advances as of March-end 2020, against 11.10 per cent as of December-end 2019.

Net NPAs position improved to 3.48 per cent of net advances as of March-end 2020, against 4.36 per cent as of December-end 2019.

As at March-end 2020, deposits were up 9 per cent YoY to ₹97,788 crore. Advances declined 3 per cent YoY to ₹64,399 crore.

During the financial year ended March 31, 2020, the Government of UT of J&K infused ₹500 crore capital in the bank. The bank allotted and issued about 15.65 crore equity shares of ₹1 each fully paid at an issue price of ₹31.93 (including premium of ₹30.93 per share).

The Government of UT of J&K’s holding in the bank has increased to 68.18 per cent as on March 31, 2020 from 59.23 per cent as at December-end 2019.

With inputs from The Hindu

Commanders emphasise need for expeditious, phased and stepwise de-escalation.

The third round of Corps Commander-level talks on Tuesday between India and China, the second one after the June 15 Galwan Valley clashes, yielded the promise of more talks at the military and diplomatic levels to disengage at the “face-off sites” along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Twenty Indian soldiers were killed by Chinese troops in close quarter combat in Galwan Valley while Beijing has not given any official figure of their dead or wounded.

Rajnath to visit Ladakh

In another sign that India is now taking the Chinese build-up along he LAC seriously, it was made known that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Ladakh on Friday.

“Both sides have emphasised the need for an expeditious, phased and stepwise de-escalation as a priority,” an Indian military source said. “This is in keeping with the agreement between External Affairs Minister and his Chinese counterpart during their conversation on June 17 that the overall situation would be handled in a responsible manner, and that both sides would implement the disengagement understanding of June 6 sincerely.”

To achieve this, more meetings are expected both at the military and the diplomatic level to arrive at a mutually agreeable solution and to ensure peace and tranquillity along the LAC as per bilateral agreements and protocols, the source stated.

The talks between Lt. Gen. Harinder Singh, General Officer Commanding of the Leh-based 14 Corps, and Maj. Gen. Liu Lin, Commander of the South Xinjiang Military District, began around 11 a.m. at the border meeting point at Chushul on the Indian side and went on for over 12 hours.

The process of disengagement was complex, the source said. The meeting was long and held in a business-like manner keeping in view the COVID-19 protocols and the discussions reflected the commitment of both sides to reduce the tensions along the LAC.

It has been learnt that both sides agreed to take forward the stalled process of disengagement agreed earlier at all friction points in Ladakh. In the first round of senior commander talks on June 6, both sides identified five conflict areas, Patrolling Point (PP) 14, 15 and 17A, North of Pangong Tso and Chushul, and agreed for limited “de-escalation” from some of these areas. It was during this “de-escalation” process near PP 14 in Galwan Valley that the clash occurred claiming 20 Indian soldiers’ lives and an unknown number of casualties on the Chinese side.

Chinese response

Responding to questions on the talks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said, “The two sides continue working towards implementing the consensus reached at the two earlier rounds of commander-level talks and made progress in effective measures by front line troops to disengage and de-escalate the situation.”

“China welcomes that,” Mr. Zhao stated emphasising the need to keep close communication through military and diplomatic channels to ease the situation and reduce the temperature along the border.

Earlier consensus

At the second round of talks on June 22 too, the two sides came to a “mutual consensus” to disengage along the LAC and the modalities for disengagement from all friction areas in eastern Ladakh were discussed. However, there has been no progress on the ground since.

On the contrary, between the Galwan clash and the second round of talks, satellite images show that China has rebuilt the observation point and also additional defensive positions at Galwan. Similarly, there has been further consolidation of positions and additional defences at Finger 4 area of Pangong Tso and also along the ridges overlooking Indian positions.

There has also been massive build-up by China in the Despang plains, which lies close to the crucial Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi (DSDBO) road linking the Sub Sector North on one side and the Siachen glacier on the other.

India’s demand

India’s consistent demand has been the restoration of status quo ante of pre May 5 positions and de-induction of forces built up by China along the LAC. China has undertaken massive mobilisation of forces, tanks, armoured vehicles, air defences and fighters close to the LAC. India too has moved in additional divisions, tanks and artillery to match Chinese deployments.

The disengagement was going to be a long drawn, step-by-step process with pullback of troops from each of the locations in a phased manner after verification, a defence source said. The major issue was of verifying the compliance by China given the earlier experience, the source added referring to the Galwan clash.

Mr. Singh’s visit to Ladakh will be his first since the beginning of the stand-off in early May. Accompanied by Army Chief Gen. Manoj Naravane, Mr. Singh is likely to review the situation with senior military commanders and interact with troops, a defence source said. Mr. Singh is also likely to visit the Leh military hospital where several soldiers injured in the Galwan clash on June 15 are being treated.

With inputs from The Hindu

His photograph and 115 posts made over the past five years have been deleted

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official page on Chinese social media website Weibo went blank on Wednesday with the removal of his photograph and all 115 posts made over the past five years.

Mr. Modi initiated the process to exit Weibo following the Union government’s decision to ban 59 Chinese apps. The government on Monday decided to impose the ban on the apps, including Weibo, citing threats to data security and the sovereignty of India.

This marks a sudden end to Mr. Modi’s “Weibo diplomacy” in China that was launched with much fanfare in 2015 as a means to directly communicate with the people of China before his first visit there as Prime Minister. His first message said, “Hello China! Looking forward to interacting with Chinese friends through Weibo”. The Indian Embassy said at the time this was “a first of a kind attempt by any leader across India.” Mr. Modi had 2.44 lakh followers.

On Tuesday, Mr. Modi’s photograph was removed from his official page, and only two posts of the 115 he posted over the past five years remained. Both had photographs of Mr. Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Posts removal

It took two days for the last posts to be removed. According to government officials handling the matter, the procedure to exit Weibo was “complex” for official and verified accounts such as Mr. Modi’s and an official process was initiated. The officials said the process was delayed “for reasons best known” to the Chinese side.

“Prime Minister Modi had 115 posts on Weibo. It was decided to manually delete them and after much effort, 113 posts were removed,” said a source. “There were two posts left where Prime Minister Modi and these are posts with photos with President Xi. On Weibo, it is difficult to remove posts with the photo of the Chinese President. Which is why, two posts still remained,” said a source.

PM was not very active on Weibo

Mr. Modi posted infrequently on Weibo, with 115 posts in five years, although his annual posts on the international day of yoga usually received wide attention in China. Among his most forwarded posts were his birthday greetings to President Xi conveyed every year.

On June 20, three statements by the Indian Embassy on the recent border tensions posted on its account on WeChat, another popular social media app, were removed by Chinese authorities. A message following the removal said the posts were taken down for violating regulations. Social media in China are subjected to extensive censorship regime. Among the foreign sites blocked in China are WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Chinese reaction to apps ban

On Tuesday, China hit out at the move by India to block 59 apps. It described the action as “a deliberate interference in practical cooperation” between the two countries.

China’s State media warned that the move would bring economic repercussions, such as affecting outbound Chinese investment into India.

In separate statements issued by its Foreign Ministry and Embassy in New Delhi, Beijing called on India to review the move. “India’s measure, selectively and discriminatorily aims at certain Chinese apps on ambiguous and far-fetched grounds, runs against fair and transparent procedure requirements, abuses national security exceptions, and suspects of violating the WTO rules,” the Embassy said. “It also goes against the general trend of international trade and E-commerce, and is not conducive to consumer interests and the market competition in India.”

The ban was one of the most discussed topics on Chinese social media this week. In an editorial, the Communist Party-run Global Times slammed what it said was “a lacklustre explanation for the nonsensical move”. “If India’s sovereignty can be damaged by a handful of apps, just how vulnerable is it?” the paper said. “It was not long before Indians realised that turning nationalist rhetoric into action is more difficult, as there are no available and affordable alternatives to Chinese-made products such as smartphones, chemicals, automotive components and many other items… It seems that not only has the Modi government failed to rein in the rising nationalism among Indians, it has also yielded to domestic pressure and even encouraged such a boycott to escalate.”

Dip in investment

The newspaper said it had conducted a survey of experts who “predicted Chinese overseas direct investment (ODI) into India will drop sharply in 2020, with two experts forecasting a more than 50 per cent cut.”

“Bad feelings go both ways, and the chance for China-India relationship to pick up in the short-term is slim. Chinese investors are on the edge with risk-aversion instinct kicking in,” Qian Feng, director of the research department of the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the paper, adding that the coming year would not only see a 50 per cent fall in Chinese investments in India, but would be “a turning point” in economic relations.

With inputs from The Hindu

A 65-year-old civil contractor died in Kashmir Wednesday following a militant attack on CRPF personnel. His family claims he was dragged out of his car and killed.

Bashir Khan’s widow consoled by her relatives and neighbours at their house | Azaan Javaid | ThePrint

Srinagar: A massive controversy erupted in Kashmir Wednesday after a civilian from Srinagar’s HMT area was killed in the aftermath of a militant attack on CRPF personnel in the Sopore region of north Kashmir.

The victim has been identified as Bashir Ahmed, a 65-year-old man who worked as a civil contractor. Ahmed was accompanied by his three-year-old grandson at the time. A CRPF trooper also died in the attack.

While Ahmed’s family has released a video message on social media, accusing Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel of dragging him out of his car and shooting him at point blank range, the Jammu & Kashmir Police said he died in the exchange of fire with militants.

At a press conference Wednesday, Kashmir Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar said the family’s accusations against the CRPF were driven by threats issued to them by militants.

However, with the allegation gaining traction online, the police in Sopore threatened legal action against those who perpetuate the “false reports and rumours” that Ahmed was killed by security forces.

Soon after Ahmed’s death, photos of his grandson from the encounter site flooded social media, including a heartbreaking shot showing the child sitting on top of his grandfather’s corpse.

Among those who shared the photos on Twitter were several top police officers of Jammu & Kashmir Police, with the official handle of Kashmir zone police force tweeting an image of the child being rescued from the site of the encounter.

This led to speculation that the photographs were being shared for publicity, even as anger erupted over what is being seen as public disclosure of a minor witness’ identity, a violation of the Juvenile Justice Act.

Kumar, however, hinted that the photos may have been clicked by security personnel, and said whoever took them would face action.

Social media users also slammed a viral video that purportedly showed a member of the security forces standing over Ahmed’s dead body.

‘Shot as he tried to protect his grandson’

The encounter in question took place Wednesday morning, when two militants allegedly attacked a CRPF patrol party from a mosque in the vicinity. The militants are believed to have escaped.

As the exchange of fire triggered vastly divergent accounts with regard to the circumstances of Ahmed’s death, Kumar convened an urgent press conference in Srinagar to offer the police’s version of events. At the press conference, he said some individuals were using the incident to stoke trouble by sharing false news.

“The video message circulated on social media by the son and daughter of the slain man is not true. They have levelled those allegations due to militant threat,” he said. “I want to ask whether they were present at the site of the incident. Did they see for themselves who fired? They circulated video messages blaming the forces for killing their father… which is baseless. If there is any eyewitness, they should come forward, so we can act,” he added.

Describing the exchange with militants, he said, “At around 7.30 am, when CRPF men were de-boarding from the vehicle to be part of joint naka party at model town Sopore, two militants hiding in the mosque fired indiscriminately at the CRPF men… One CRPF trooper died and three others were injured.” 

Kumar added, “A civilian was also hit by bullets and died later. As the militants carried out the attack, the victim came out of his car carrying the kid but was hit by bullets.”

He claimed that Ahmed tried to flee the car after hearing gun shots, and sustained a bullet injury as he attempted to protect his grandson.

Following the exchange, Kumar said, he deliberately didn’t shut down the internet services in Sopore “just to see how people would behave”. 

He also appealed to mosque committees to exert pressure on militants to not use mosques as attack bases, noting that it was the second instance in a month where militants had attacked the security forces from a mosque, the first one taking place in Pampore in June. 

Asked about the identity of the person who clicked the child’s picture with Ahmed’s corpse, the IGP said, “Going to the operation area with mobiles is wrong. I will ensure police teams going for operations don’t carry mobiles along as that may pose a threat to their lives. Whoever has shared his pictures will have to face action.”

‘They ended our world’

According to Ahmed’s family, he was on his way to Handwara, just over 20 km from Sopore, when the exchange of fire began.

“We received a call, telling us someone has killed your uncle on the road. Then we went to the spot and asked some people present there what happened. They told us that the militants attacked the security forces and, in that process, they lost numerous persons,” said Farooq Ahmed Khan, Ahmed’s nephew. 

“To take revenge, they took my uncle out of his car, while his grandson was in his lap, and they shot at him in the back. He was dead on the spot. Local residents watched the scene through their windows.”

Khan’s wife, who earlier worked with the police, alleged that the security forces then placed the minor on Ahmed’s lifeless body, “clicked pictures for a PR stunt and then claimed they had rescued the child”.

Another relative, Tanveer Ahmed, said Ahmed was on his way to Handwara to bring back the family help. “The grandson was extremely attached to Khan sahab, to the extent that his mother had left him with his grandparents. All day he would follow Khan sahab… Today, when Khan sahab left for Handwara, the child wanted to accompany him. Little did we know this would be the last time he saw his grandfather’s face. We are devastated,” he added.

Ahmed’s widow Farooqa Khan was disconsolate. “They ended our world, what can we say? The military personnel took him out of the car and shot him. Is this Modi’s justice? Is this our freedom?” she said. 

The two major Jammu & Kashmir political parties, the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), condemned the killing and demanded a probe into the incident. 

In a statement issued Wednesday, NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar asked the government to reveal the facts that led to Ahmed’s death. “Targeting civilians, minors is condemnable, such barbaric incidents cannot be tolerated. The heart-wrenching sight of a dead man with the kid atop his chest has shaken every sane person. Incidents like these agitate one’s souls and conscience,” he said.

The PDP said the statement issued by the family was different from the official account and this needs to be probed. “This needs to be probed at a high level and a time-bound inquiry and impartial probe into the matter is what we demand from the government at present,” the PDP added.

With inputs from ThePrint

Disclaimer: This story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.