Syed Ali Shah Gilani asked to pay Rs 1.73cr tax

Buy Medicinal seeds

Srinagar : Income Tax department has asked  Kashmiri separatist  Syed Ali Shah Geelani to pay Rs 1.73 crore in tax dues over a period when he had not filed his returns after rejecting his appeal.

The I-T sleuths, who had swooped on residences of Geelani and his family members in 2002 and seized valuable items including a diamond-studded watch gifted by Pakistan Government, had raised a tax demand of over Rs 1.5 crore.

Geelani challenged the demand and approached the Commissioner of Income Tax (appeals) for review of the case and also sought a waiver, saying he did not earn anything other than the pension from Government of Jammu and Kashmir and from agriculture land.

The case dragged on for nearly three years and recently the appeal was dismissed after which he was asked to deposit Rs 1.73 crore as tax liabilities by the end of 2010.

Geelani, who heads the breakaway faction of Hurriyat Conference, has still the option to go to the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT).

The Tax Department had raised the demand of Rs 1.73 crore against the firebrand Jamaat-e-Islami leader after giving him ample opportunities to furnish answers to a questionnaire about his sources of income.

The questionnaire followed an assessment of Geelani's wealth by the department following a series of raids conducted at his house and other places in June 2002.

The department had raided Geelani's house and other places of his kin on June 9, 2002 and seized Rs 10.2 lakh and 10,000 US dollars in cash, vouchers showing purchase of substantial amount of jewellery, a diamond-encrusted watch inscribed with "From Pakistan Government" besides documents pertaining to purchase of property and vehicles.

Geelani had shown an annual income of Rs 17,100--Rs 7,100 as pension from the state Assembly as a former MLA and Rs 10,000 as agriculture income.

However, according to the assessment made by the Income Tax Department, the monthly expenditure of Geelani allegedly ranged from Rs one lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh as he had 15 servants at his house and his wife had confirmed that she used to get Rs 25,000 per month for kitchen expenses.

When asked to comment, Geelani said he had not received the notice as yet and would like to first understand the grounds of rejection before reacting.

Unmarked graves result of impunity enjoyed by forces under AFSPA: Prashant Bhushan

SRINAGAR, October 1: Calling for DNA profiling in the anonymous/unmarked graves, senior Supreme Court lawyer and influential core member of team Anna, Prashant Bhushan  Friday said unbridled impunity to forces  under Armed Forces Special Powers Act  (AFSPA) has led to  thousands of such graves across the State, ISHFAQ TANTRY reports in Rissing Kashmir (30/10/2011)

“Primarily, I was here to appear in 1996 Baderwah civilian killing case, which was listed before High Court today. This is one of the case which indicates how large number of  persons were killed in Kashmir over the years by forces”, Prashant Bhushan, a leading Supreme Court lawyer, said while addressing a press conference, here today.

He said in the particular (Baderwah killing case) involving death of three persons in a fake encounter, the charge sheet was filed but subsequent trial ended in acquittal of the main accused because the initial investigation had loopholes.

Linking the Baderwah fake encounter case with discovery of unmarked and unknown graves in Kashmir, Bhushan said if the fourth person in the case, Talib Hussain, who escaped from clutches of the accused would have been killed,  all the three persons would have been buried in an anonymous or unknown grave somewhere.

“That is why we say that anonymous grave issue, as reported by the SHRC in its investigation,  is important to be probed. The DNA profiling should be done and it should be matched with the DNA profiles of the missing persons, whose list is available with APDP,” he said.

He said Baderwah case is one such case, which can be re-investigated and perpetrators, howsoever influential, be brought to the book. “Because of the impunity enjoyed by armed forces under special powers like AFSPA, such crime are repeated time and again”.

Linking impunity of troops under special powers with mass anonymous graves, team Anna member said this cycle of impunity needs to be broken. “It will be broken only when we can provide justice  to victims by  bringing culprits, howsoever big or influential they may be, to book. For this reason, we are demanding that AFSPA should be removed and DNA profiling  of victims in unmarked  graves be carried out,” he said.

About Hurriyat (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq proposal to seek support of team Anna  on mass grave issue, Bhushan said the matter  is under consideration.“  I am here in my individual capacity. But the proposal is before the core group and I hope it will be considered soon”, he said.

He, however, dismissed the proposal of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to setting up Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to probe issues like unmarked graves.  “It (TRC) won’t serve any purpose. TRC has its uses but it cannot be a complete substitute for booking persons involved in heinous crimes. Here (in Kashmir) we are dealing with accountability of forces who have committed heinous crimes,” he said.

The SC lawyer linked the mass graves issue with unresolved nature of Kashmir issue. “The longer the Kashmir issue festers, the larger number of forces would operate  in Kashmir and it would result in larger number of human rights abuses  like existence of unmarked graves,” he said.

He said conditions should be created conducive for political solution  to the Kashmir problem.
Baderwah Case hearing

Meanwhile, High Court Friday posted the  writ petition seeking reinvestigation into 1996 fake encounter case  for hearing on October 10.

“ The court  will not proceed into the case till Advocate General causes his appearance”, Justice Hasnain Masoodi observed  after  the petitioner lawyer Prashant Bhushan pressed  for issuing notices in the case and the recall of the  case records.

The defence counsel also pleaded  for reinvestigation of the case on the pattern of Best Bakery, Rubabudin and Zahira Sheikh cases wherein Supreme Court ordered reinvestigation and set up the Special Investigation Teams.

Earlier, senior additional Advocate General informed the court that the office of the Advocate General has not received any notice for the assistance of AG in the case from the bench. “The AG’s office has no such information. Advocate General cannot appear in the case, as he has already boarded the plane,” he informed the court.

The families of  Baderwah fake encounter victims, Fazal Hussain Dar, Fareed Hussain Dar and Mohammad Hussain Lone, who were killed in 1996,  had  on  September 21, 2011 approached  High Court with a petition seeking  re-opening  and  reinvestigation of the  case. (Writer-South Asia)

Freedom of Kashmir: Let them go…

By: Madhav Desai

Kashmir, an issue of pride for India and Pakistan has been burning since the both countries got their independence from the British Raj.

Its a sensitive issue to talk about on a blog, especially by an Indian, as the sentiments that prevail in India, can easily result in to burning my effigies just for expressing my views here.

Do not get me wrong, as I am pro-Indian and I love the Indian Nation more than anything in this world.

Okay coming back to Kashmir, there has been a problem there for long but since last couple of weeks its been a chaos. Many of you will remember that about a year back, Kashmiris were up in arms when the Govt. decided to give away some land to Amarnath Temple Board. People in Kashmir proclaimed that the Yatra has been taking place since many years without any interruption so why give away Kashmiri land to Hindu Temple. Well they easily forgot that right in heart of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and other towns / villages / cities of India  acres of Land have been encroched by Waqf Board, Mosques, Mouselleium and other Muslim institutions, and its a pity and really low of Kashmiri people to ask this back.

Now, there is another observation, the native language of Kashmir is Kashmiri, Dogri, etc but the guys who claim to be Kashmiris and are pro-Pakistani speak and write URDU which has nothing to do with Kashmir.

Secondly, the whole lifeline of Kashmir works through Hindu / Sikh Jammu and other parts of India. They dont understand that they will starve if there is no India to support them. At the time of Amarnath Land issue Kashmiris started walking towards the border in hope to join Pakistan. Well, if they really had guts to do that then they should join Pakistan, but let me give you guys some facts so that general Kashmiris can make up their mind.

Pakistan is a failed state and their Foreign Minister had to recently go to NATO to ask for monies to fund their armies and government institution. Anything that Pakistan has is either made in PR China or USA. Moreover they hate USA who are really “anna-datta” (Feeding God) of Pakistan. They never had a good stable government in their history and the militants there thinks they can take on the world (well they think like this but they actually forget that they fight from caves).

States fail, States succeed; there was even time in India when Indira Gandhi went towards declaring an emergency. the Indian state failed (its another thing that it rebounded and made in to one of the most successful states of 21st century). The point here is that Kashmiris dont think things through. They take emotional decisions based on some uneducated, class-less leaders who happen to be a separatists.

While being in NCC for couple of years, I attended one of their National Camps and met a few Hindu Kashmiris as well as Muslim Kashmiris back in 1996 they all seemed friendly. My Hindu Kashmiri friend who used to live in Doda district told me that on the day of independence the Pak-supporters come and put Pak flags on their houses and they cant remove them. This is not done.

98% of Kashmiri Pandits are out of Kashmir, still 13% of Indian Muslims live in safety and prosper everyday in Majority-Hindu India, how is this fair. I strongly believe that any majority whether Hindus or Muslims should protect the minority that live side-by-side with them. India would be colour-less without all the Muslim that it has, as you can clearly see that Kashmir is colour-less without any Hindu Kashmiri Pandits.

Another good example is Pakistan, they got rid of majority of non-muslim population at the time of Partition, even though I believe Jinnah was a democrat and was secular. Pakistan has not seen a day of peace since independence and if Kashmiris reject India, they wont see a day of peace either as they would be crushed by China, oppressed by Pakistan and would never be again accepted or protected by India.

I feel sorry for Kashmiris who dont see that the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir should really be independent, if Pakistan was really pro-Kashmir, instead they gave 1/3rd of POK to China as a gift (didnt even fight for it – as it was integral part of Kashmir before independence and during the British / Mughal Raj).  Even today there is no government and 100s of issues in Azad Kashmir, there are militant training camps being run and bred there. If this is what youth of Kashmir wants then be it, let them enjoy that sort of life instead of democratic living.

For Kashmiris there are only two options, stay with India and join the wave of economic and social reform that country is going through (instead of pushing it down) or join Pakistan and share their misery (from food shortage to international begging), but remember there is no third way as Pakistan can never let you guys be independent.

For India there leaves only one option whether they solve it today or 100 years down the line, if Kashmiris hate calling themselves Indians and dont want to be recognised as Indian (and also dont support our secularism), then its better to let them go, instead of spending billions on them – we can easily find a decent cause in any of our states from Jammu (+ Leh and Ladakh) to Kerala.

Whatever all concerned parties decide they should look at their Wives and Kids and see for their better, prosperous future.

Kashmir protests spontaneous, peaceful: Agnivesh

By Johan Simith
Srinagar,  August 3: Terming protests in Kashmir as spontaneous and peaceful, Swami Agnivesh, a renowned social activist of India, who headed five-member delegation to Valley, said he will tell Indian people that Kashmiris especially youth are no longer enamored by Pakistan and that time is ripe for India to initiate a fruitful dialogue to resolve the Kashmir problem.

"For the first time I am gladdened that my visit is going to bear the fruit. My impression which I would like to share with the people in New Delhi is that Kashmiris especially the youth are no longer in love with Pakistan. This is a big message for India and its people," Swami Agnivesh told Rising Kashmir in an interview here.

Asserting that people of Kashmir are talking in clear terms, he said, "If somebody in New Delhi accuses them of hobnobbing with Pakistan, they feel hurt. They are not carrying out the protests at the behest of Pakistan. Leadership in Delhi should stop even loosely alleging that protests in Kashmir are being sponsored by Pakistan".

He admitted that the protests in Kashmir are spontaneous and largely peaceful. "The protests will be peaceful if there will be no provocation from CRPF or troopers," Swami said.

Stating that presence of military and paramilitary forces should be reduced in Kashmir, he said, "Police should take charge of law and order situation. I also feel a humane touch is needed to deal with the situation. I would seek an appointment with Prime Minister, Home Minister and Rahul Gandhi after my return to New Delhi and will brief them about the present situation in Kashmir".

Asked why he is bringing in Rahul Gandhi, Swami said, "He represents a new power centre. After the Nimgiri and Vedanta episodes, he is definitely emerging as a new centre of power. I also believe that he has the blood of Kashmiriyat in his veins and am sure that he has the charisma to attract the Kashmiri youth for dialogue".

Asked if New Delhi is ready to initiate dialogue over Kashmir, he said, "I feel the dialogue cannot be a single channel, where the government talks only to separatists. There has to be an in-depth dialogue with people that matter especially the youth of Kashmir. There should be dialogue between civil society here and there and for this reason we have resolved to start peoples’ initiative on Kashmir. This will be an ongoing process. Our visit would be followed by more and more such visits".

Elaborating on different channels of communication, Swami said, "We would like to open a channel thorough civil society. Then another channel is the Government channel and the constitutional experts should also open the channel. Talks should be held through different channels because long term solution is required".

Asked what according to him would be the best solution of the issue, he said he does not know it but a feasible solution to Kashmir problem has to be found. "Lot of water has flown down Jehlum since 1947 or since the signing of Instrument of Accession. A panel of constitutional experts is needed to arrive at a modern and feasible solution to the Kashmir issue," he said.

Asked whether he favours solution within ambit of Indian constitution, Swami said, "Whatever it is the solution should be found. I have got the copies of "Achievable Nationhood" and autonomy report adopted by State Assembly. I wonder why these valuable documents were not debated or discussed. The Autonomy report was adopted by a democratically elected Assembly and put forward to Prime Minister but they ignored it. I want to say that you should not ascribe motives to it (autonomy report) without studying it. The autonomy report should not be interpreted as secession. This type of mindset should not lead us to anywhere".

He said it is the ripe time to initiate a fruitful dialogue to resolve the Kashmir problem.

Swami disclosed that he has been invited to visit Kashmir again on the eve of Eid by Hurriyat (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. "I feel honoured by such an invitation".

"A heart-to-heart dialogue rather than a dialogue with vicious mindset is required. I would also like to appeal my BJP friends don’t try to create more misunderstanding over Kashmir", he said adding there are chances that the people of Pakistan administered Kashmir (PaK) might also like to join hands with mainstream politicians of Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile,Admiral (Retd) L Ramdas, who accompanied the visiting team of Indian Civil Society, is of the view that people of Kashmir no longer want Pakistan but Azadi.

Talking to Rising Kashmir, Ramdas said, "We don’t like the phrase seperatists. They are the leaders with a view. We met a spectrum of these leaders. Though all of them have their views, but the basic underlying fact across the spectrum is that they want what they call Azadi."

He said, "Even when we met Geelani, he did not mention the word Pakistan during the entire interview. So I think there is a visible change.This is really a golden opportunity.Templates are ready there with GoI, from where they can pick up and start talking."

Stating that systems and the people have changed in Kashmir, Ramdas replied that in Kashmir the youth are in charge and India needs to engage them, when asked if Inadi can break the bread with the Kashmiri youth.

On the perception in Kashmir that India is never serious, he said, "I can understand there is a feeling of helplessness. But I hope people there (India) are serious. If you want to lead, you need to lead by example. You can’t expect people to simply follow you."

On the question of repealing AFSPA, Ramdas revealed that Centre is mulling to do away with this law.

"Now even Home Minister has given you an open charter to come forward for talks. I think you (Kashmiri leadership) should share their thoughts (over AFSPA) when you meet him. I think it is important to cash in on this offer and tell your point straight."

During their stay in valley, Swami Agnivesh along with other members of the team, including Ramdas, Mohini Giri, Dominic Emmaneul, Mazhar Hussain, Nusrat Andrabi, Tasnim Akhtar and former chairman of Public Service Commission Mohammad Shafi Pandit, interacted with a cross-section of people, including separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. (Writer-South Asia)