India Must Respect Freedom struggle in Kashmir : Dr Abdul Ruff

By : Dr. Abdul Ruff

Frankly, Kashmir is not a dispute at all, it is like some bank robbers entering a bank and looting and then occupying the bank premises, killing employees and the people around, claiming that the bank belongs to them as an integral part of global robbery network. International organizations should have intervened immediately to evacuate the occupiers kicking them out with force and undertake punitive measures. However, the UK, India’s former colonizer and a veto guy of the notorious UNSC and the source directly responsible for Indian invasion of its neighbor JK soon after they offered freedom to India prevented that from happening. In stead, India and its western supporters, especially the British colonizers, have made Jammu Kashmir appears to be a dispute. Indian military also merged Jammu Kashmir military, predominantly of Hindus, within Indian military forces and denied any chance for Kashmiris to fight a fitting war against Indian occupation and its fascist attacks on Kashmiris.

After occupation of JK and subsequent genocides in Kashmir region, India quickly added JK in its account book called constitution invalidating all sorts of such gimmicks. With a blind UNSC refusing to protect the Kashmiri nation from continued Indian genocides, a growing fascist India just occupies it by brute force after crippling the military power of the then independent JK. But occupation involves the future of Kashmiris. Years of Indian occupation has made a boundary dispute between India and Pakistan but. Whenever the talks between the two countries fail, Kashmiris become direct victims.

The Kashmir issue, now appearing to be a dispute between India and Pakistan while the defenseless Kashmiris fighting for sovereignty back from arrogant occupier India just kill themselves as well as let India kill them at will, is a 62-yr old problem needing urgent resolution but it cannot be resolved in shortest possible time. Any solution which is acceptable to all shall be the better option. Union Home Minister had himself stood in the Parliament and said that accession of JK with India is unique and needs unique solution. Of course, it is rude on the part of world community to expect a terror India to respect the freedom sentiments of Kashmiris and let them live as a free nation with full sovereignty.

Pro-India elements, thriving at cost of the rest of Kashmiris, know the Kashmir dispute is only an Indian illusion. Indian puppet government in JK is surprised that the freedom leaders don’t feel shy in talking to visiting parliament members but are not ready to talk to interlocutors who have made it clear that they are ready to listen to anybody on any issue. Omar refuses to understand that interlocutors could do nothing except playing fiddle for India, and even if they submit a pro-freedom report to Indian state, no action could be forthcoming. But the parliamentarians would raise the Kashmir issue on the parliament, even if they might be pressed by their parties not to support Kashmir cause.

It is an established thought, if not a fact, that better relations between India and Pakistan- both occupy Jammu Kashmir- quicker the establishment of an independent Jammu Kashmir. Kashmiris welcome the latest thaw in Pakistan and India relations but many have maintained that without the presence of Kashmiris’ true representatives, the talks between the two countries would remain inconclusive. Another freedom leader Shabbir Ahmad Shah reiterated that the people of Kashmir would continue their struggle till its logical conclusion. APHC leader, Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi in a media interview in Srinagar said that the amicable resolution of the Kashmir dispute was imperative for durable peace in the region.

India keeps drafting strategies to divide Kashmiris and kill them. However, Indian strategy to divide Jammu Kashmir would not be tolerated by Kashmiris. Geelani demanded its immediate revocation of Dogra Certificates by the JK authorities to the people of Jammu as a deep rooted conspiracy to divide the territory on ethnic lines. This is a part of long-term policy of India to pave way for according supremacy to particular section of people over the Muslim majority of Kashmir.

Any clash between the India and Pakistan in the world cup semi-final in India-Mohali has not only silenced the market places but emptied the government offices, private offices and educational institutions in the second half of the day in the valley today. Hours before the encounter began, government employees and students left their offices and educational institutions to watch the cricket match in their homes. Markets also presented a deserted look as the shopkeepers, preferring to watch the event rather than doing their business, closed their shops with streets also de-peopled. No sooner did the clock strike 2 PM, the streets became deserted. Despite being a normal day, strike-like-situation prevailed. The movement of people became meager while an eerie silence filled the air. Though the shops were open but without customers. Everyone could be seen glued to the television sets. Shop and markets were closed down before time. As for security reasons, Section 144 was imposed in the Valley restricting gathering of more than four people at one place. Police had also banned watching cricket on TVs, or big screens on roads, street or shops. There were reports from various places of the city where in police had refrained people from watching cricket on street. Snapped electricity at some places also played a spoil spot for sometime at few places.

Indian military occupation personnel have introduced stone attack that was imbibed b the defenseless Kashmiris to defend themselves from Indian terror attacks. While making a reference to the stone throwing by protesters on the streets of Kashmir that has shaken the foundations of his government in last two months, JK CM Omar said it is better to throw shoes (at him) than stones. As the national flag was being unfurled in Srinagar the Indian puppet Omar Abdullah stood up at the raised podium with Director General of Police K. Khoda next to him, a Kashmiri patriot sitting in the third row had taken off his brown shinny shoe and hurled it straight towards the podium. The shoe missed the target but attracted the intended attention immediately. The only tool available to Kashmiris to oppose the Indian brutal occupation is his worn out shoe. That is the true spirit of Kashmiriyat seeking to free itself from foreign invaders, criminals, looters and criminal-genociders.

By using the Army and police to satiate its party interests, the NC is displaying its sheer shortsightedness. As a political party, the NC should fight Hurriyat’s peaceful programs at the political level only. Syed Geelani, the Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (G), stated that that the campaign launched by the NC and New Delhi is wrong in all respects. Elaborating, Senior Hurriyet leader Geelani alleged that frivolous cases were being registered against most of the arrested youth in Kashmir. And those arrested youth who get recommendation from the NC activists, are forced to pay ransom for their release. This is a dangerous campaign by virtue of which the career of our younger generation is being ruined. The FIRs become a life-long problem for youth. Geelani said that the JK Government’s silence over the Indian terror excesses on the people tantamounts to crime against the Kashmir nation. For highlighting the excesses, Geelani said the conglomerate is left with no option but to stage protests. Taking all the aspects into consideration, we can only use hartal to register our protest against the atrocities. We have kept this option reserved and whenever situation demands we will use this birth and democratic right.

True, Kashmiris have lost over100, 000 innocent kith and kin during the freedom struggle in recent years. Notwithstanding all pressure cum terror tactics of occupying India, the people of Kashmir would never give up the cause as history stood testimony to the fact that sentiment for freedom was getting stronger with each passing day. Talking to the 10-member civil society group of India that called on him at his Hyderpora residence Srinagar, Syed Ali Shah Geelani the Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (G) and the senior most freedom fighter spearheading sovereignty struggle for years now says Kashmir is an internationally accepted dispute which has historical background. Geelani told the delegation that it was responsibility of the civil society of India to create awareness in their public and government about the aspirations and sentiments of the Kashmiri people.

Geelani, spearheading the ongoing ‘Quit Jammu and Kashmir Movement’, came down heavily recently on the ruling National Conference accusing it of using Army and Police for its interests and to suppress the ongoing movement. The veteran leader maintained that being a political party, the NC should fight the conglomerate’s peaceful programs "politically and not through military might." In a statement, Geelani castigated New Delhi for what he said illegally using state power to suppress the peaceful agitation of Kashmiris. “For this purpose, the NC has been directed to help the police and Army. The NC leaders in collusion with the concerned station house officers prepare the list of youth, who have taken more or less part in the agitation since June this year. These youth are asked to report to the Police Stations and then arrested or their houses are raided,” Geelani said, urging the people to stage peaceful protests from Maghrib to Isha prayers December 16 and for one hour after the congregational prayers on Friday December 17 respectively.

Talking to a 40-member delegation of Greater Municipal Corporation Hyderabad that visited him at Srinagar, Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (M) Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on 30th March stressed the need for formation of a Kashmir Group in Parliament to monitor situation in the state and put forth recommendations for resolving Kashmir issue. Mirwaiz appraised the delegation of the Corporation, headed by Assad-ud-Din Owaisi, MP, about the historical background of Kashmir issue, and peoples’ sentiments, wishes and their aspiration. He also gave a detailed account of the incidents of human rights violations and ‘brute force’ and repressive method employed by the government through its forces to quell upsurge of peaceful mass protests, processions and rallies since 2008. He narrated cases of Torture of Kashmiris in jails.

Mirwaiz said if Manmohan Singh and Yousuf Raza Gilani could successfully watch cricket in Delhi as part of sport/cricket diplomacy, why they cannot succeed in pushing forward the composite dialogue on resolving the Kashmir issue. He says it would be a matter joy for Hurriyat and people of Kashmir and would certainly also help hammer out a solution acceptable to the both countries and people of Kashmir. But if India persists on its rigidity and continued to show non-seriousness, it will worsen the future.

It appears, India perhaps is willing to cede to Pakistan some more lands from occupied Kashmir even by a movie type brief war and settle the “dispute” with Pakistan in India’s favor. There have been atrocities on Kashmiris in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) under Pakistani control. Some Kashmiris living in Pakistan administered AJK want AJK to merge with Pakistan just as bulk of Hindus in Jammu want to be part of Hindu India whether JK becomes free or not. And this sentiment makes India to take away Jammu from JK in the event of a free JK emerging. Elements in the AJK too need to be made accountable and punished for their crimes.

Dr. Abdul Ruff, Specialist on State Terrorism; Chancellor-Founder of Centor for International Affairs(CIA); Chronicler of Freedom movements (Palestine, Kashmir, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Xinjiang, Chechnya, etc); Former university Teacher, Analyst in International Affairs; Terrorism is caused by anti-Islamic forces. Fake democracies like USA and India have zero tolerance to any criticism of their anti-Muslim and other aggressive practices. Anti-Muslimism and anti-Islamism are more dangerous than "terrorism". Anti-Islamic forces & terrorists are using criminal elements for terrorizing the world and they are harming genuine interests of ordinary Muslims. Unfortunately, we have many hypocrites among Muslims. (abdulruff_jnu@yahoo.com/91-9961868309) 

More details: http://www.allvoices.com

Jammu and Kashmir Police and National Conference

Why are Kashmiris labeled as terrorists?

By: SAS Gilani
The Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (G) Syed Ali Shah Geelani Wednesday said the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has become “non-existent and Police is running the affairs of the state.”

He also castigated the J&K Police for what he said its anti-people role in the past two decades and maintained they have turned “more brutal than soldiers”.

The veteran leader reiterated that his five minimum demands can make conducive atmosphere for dialogue and urged the Organization of Islamic Conference and Pakistan to pass resolutions to impress upon UN to implement its resolutions on Kashmir. He also demanded an international war criminal tribunal to investigate the “war crimes” in the Valley.

‘POLICE AT HELM OF AFFAIRS’
Geelani said according to Army Chief and Director General of Police only 500 militants were active in Kashmir. “Then the presence of over eight lakh soldiers in Kashmir has no justification. As if it was not enough, the CM has become non-existent. The DGP and SHOs have been giving policy statements. The police have taken the responsibility of restoring peace and muzzling voices by arresting youth. It is regrettable that the police have waged a war and are at the forefront of inflicting atrocities on Kashmiris. The police have stooped so low that it now brands the criminals as stone pelters to defame our sacred movement,” Geelani said, addressing a seminar titled ‘UN resolutions and suppressed nations sacrifices’ at his Hyderpora residence.

‘STATE TERRORISM AT ITS WORST’
“I stand witness to the atrocities inflicted by the successive regimes on the Kashmiris since 1947 to suppress their movement. In ’50s, Kashmirs who wore green turbans were branded as Pakistanis and pushed behind bars. Kashmiris even had to face imprisonment for listening to Radio Pakistan and Azad Kashmir. People say Dogra regime was brutal, but I want to say without any doubt that the NC’s Halqa presidents are more heinous than (Maharaja) Hari Singh,” Geelani alleged.

Elaborating, Geelani said those who challenged accession were jailed. “Ironically, those whom Kashmiris thought were their leaders let them down and they joined hands with New Delhi. When emergency was imposed in India, these so-called leaders invited its extension to Jammu and Kashmir. I have seen how people were tortured in custody. Even I was confined to a cell. In the garb of ruthless power, such leaders got those killed who challenged the 1975 accord,” he said.

Geelani said Kashmiris participated in the elections after 1975 to push for amicable resolution of Kashmir through UN resolutions. “I didn’t want our future generations to blame us for letting the mainstream leaders win unopposed. When I along with my supporters went to Devsar and Ganderbal for campaigning, we were attacked with iron rods by NC activists saying ‘how dare you stand against Bab (Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah). In 1987, Kashmiris tried to participate in elections and the candidates who were on the verge of success, were jailed. Our youth were left with no option but to start armed struggle for achieving their right to self-determination,” he said.

Justifying the armed struggle of Kashmiris, Geelani accused India of purusuing double standards. “When Indian sees Subhash Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh who used violent methods to get independence from British as heroes, why are Kashmiris labeled as terrorists? Kashmiris have rendered more sacrifices than Indians against the British. India has been using state terrorism to suppress the Kashmiris’ movement. State terrorism has targeted all the weak, institutions and intellectuals,” he said.

Recounting major massacres since 1990 in the Valley, Geelani accused India of using the Ikhwanis (renegades) to kill Kashmiris. “These Ikhwanis were reared in Army camps and given all the perks and powers to eliminate Kashmiris. They were instrumental in killing of innocent civilians and religious scholars. I urge the UN to depute its War Crimes Tribunal to investigate the war crimes in Kashmir and punish the accused cops and soldiers,” he said.

Geelani said the conglomerate had launched demilitarization campaign in every district last year. “In 2010, it transformed into Go India Go Back movement. For the first time in 63 years, India sent its Rapid Action Force to Kashmir as if it had to fight China. What was the fault of 112 youth and teenagers who were killed since June last year?” he asked.

‘NO GRUDGE AGAINST INDIAN PEOPLE’
Geelani maintained that it was the standing policy of the Conglomerate to peacefully carry forward the ongoing movement. “We have asked people to even refrain from raising provocative slogans during protests. Kashmiris don’t have any grudge with people of India. We are only protesting against the forced and de facto control of the State by India,” he said.

He said gradually the Indian civil society members including Arundhati Roy, Gautam Navlakha and Mani Shankar Ayar were coming forward to help the cause of Kashmiris.

“When Chidambaram (Home Minister) said in the Indian Parliament that Kashmir is a case of broken promises, why does Indian leadership shy away from accepting and fulfilling the promises? India is trying to instigate us to resort to violence but we should not fall in its trap and maintain calm,” he said.

ON DIALOGUE
Geelani said the Conglomerate was not averse to dialogue. “But all the talks which were held 150 times since 1947 have failed to resolve the issue. We have no problem to enter into dialogue process but there should be conducive atmosphere for it. I reiterate my five minimum preconditions for dialogue including start of demilitarization, revocation of special powers to armed forces, release of political prisoners for participating in talks,” he said.

“After the acceptance of these conditions, India, Pakistan and the leadership of Kashmir can talk and resolve the dispute in the light of UN resolutions and sacrifices rendered by Kashmiris,” he added.

Geelani maintained that UN resolutions on Kashmir are still relevant. “UN has failed to discharge its responsibilities due to pressure from the VETO powers. UN is bound to implement the resolutions. I urge Organization of Islamic Countries and Pakistan to pass resolutions to impress upon UN to implement the UN resolution on Kashmir.

‘UNIFICATION NOT NEEDED’
Geelani said there was no need of unification among the pro-freedom organizations as they have common goal to achieve right of self-determination. “If two platforms are pursuing one goal, the need for unification becomes redundant. Even when the Hurriyat was united for 10 years, India did not listen to us. So we should continue to carry forward the movement to its logical conclusion,” he said.

He said any attempts to divide Kashmir will be thwarted. “We have religious and human relationship with people of all religious in the state. We will never allow division of Kashmir,” he said.

He also impressed upon every section of the society including intellectuals to work for strengthening the movement.

RESOLVE KASHMIR’
Senior journalist Zahir-ud-Din dwelt at length on the UN resolutions on Kashmir in respect of its legality. He maintained that the UN resolutions of Aug 13, 1948, and Jan 5 1949 can’t be separated. “If the first resolution is body the second is soul,” he said.

Columnist ZG Muhammad hit back at those who have been accusing intellectuals of failing to support the ongoing movement. “Intellectuals don’t lead, it is the job of leaders. In our case, journalists have an important role as ambassadors to objectively reflect the sentiments of the people.  Indian intellectuals can play imperative role in building consensus about Kashmir among the people like their American counterparts did in Vietnam,” he said.

However, he maintained that poets cannot be considered as intellectuals.  “An intellectual should play supplementary in the movement,” he added.

Dr Sheikh Showkat Hussain who teaches Law at Kashmir University minced no words in saying that Kashmiris have failed to document their history. “We have a tragedy and when we are asked about the dispute, we refer to the books of Walter Lawrence and Alistair Lamb. We have been trying to accomplish the assignments of others who are driven by vested interests. As a result the Kashmir dispute is not properly reflected,” Dr Showkat said.

He maintained that UN resolutions were like a title deed and stressed for intensifying efforts to implement them.

“The ongoing movement is in a state of confusion. Kashmiris have been giving sacrifices and leaders and intellectuals have failed to channelize them. Time and tide wait for none. In the past, many leaders have been thrown out of the movement. If the leaders don’t act, new actors are bound to emerge,” he said.

Noted columnist Dr Javid Iqbal accused India of exploiting Kashmir’s water resources. “We are purchasing our own power from New Delhi. We have to bear in mind that nobody cares for the weak. We have to ourselves safeguard our nation. Our leaders have always fallen in the trap of New Delhi. What Akbar did to Yusuf Shah Chak Pandit Nehru repeated it with Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah,” he said.

He castigated Kashmiris for resorting to extravagance. “We spend our life saving on marriages and food and forget our responsibilities towards the nation. We have become gastronomes. We go into hibernation during winter and remember about the right of self-determination in summer. We need to do self-introspection,” he said.

Senior journalist Riyaz Masroor said the challenge for the pro-freedom leaders in 2011 will be to reinterpret the UN resolutions and safeguard the sacrifices rendered by Kashmiris.

“UN resolution has endorsed the role of local authorities in implementing even the plebiscite. It is the challenge for the Hurriyat to review its stance regarding democratic practices,” Masroor said. He also said the seminars should be conducted in a proper way. “There should be difference between public meetings and seminars. Besides space should be given for opposite views,” he added.

Senior leader of Hurriyat (G) Saleem Zargar traced the history of inception of armed struggle in Kashmir and need to take the movement to its logical conclusion. “There is confusion at the leadership level. Some leaders have been linking the ongoing movement with violence. Stone pelting is a weapon of resistance,” he said.

Advocate Syed Manzoor of High Court Bar Association underscored the need to forge unity among the pro-freedom camp.

Pakistan test fires nuclear-capable Babur cruise missile

By Johan Simth

Islamabad, April 29: Pakistan test fired nuclear-capable Babur (Hatf-7) cruise missile with a range of 600 km that can hit targets in India.

The test of the indigenous-developed missile was “part of a process of validating the system,” said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations. The statement did not mention where the test was conducted.

The successful test of Hatf-7 or Babur cruise missile was witnessed by Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman Gen Khalid Shamim Wynne, who said the launch would “go a long way in consolidating Pakistan’s strategic deterrence capability and further strengthening national security.”

“Pakistan’s resolve and commitment to continue its strategic program will remain paramount,” he said.

The test was “warmly appreciated by the President and Prime Minister,” who congratulated the scientists and engineers on their success, the statement said.

The Director General of the Strategic Plans Division, Lt Gen (Retd) Khalid Ahmed Kidwai, Army Strategic Force Command chief Lt Gen Jamil Haider, senior officers from the military and strategic organizations, scientists and engineers also witnessed the test.

The Babur can carry strategic or conventional warheads and has stealth capabilities, the statement said.

It is a “low flying, terrain-hugging missile with high maneuverability, pin-point accuracy and radar avoidance features.”

The missile also incorporates modern cruise missile technology of terrain contour matching (TERCOM) and digital scene matching and area co-relation (DSMAC), the statement said.

Kashmiri Pandit boy’s disappearance

Sage cashmeriana: http://jkmpic.blogspot.com

Srinagar, 29 April:  Five weeks on, there is no word about 21-year-old Kashmiri Pandit boy who went missing from his native village Chandrigam in South Kashmir’s Aishmuqam town.  Such instances are not new to Kashmir but Sushil Kumar’s disappearance is significant for two reasons. For one he is a non-Muslim Kashmiri Pandit. Two, his family is among hundreds of other Pandit families that chose to stay put when other Pandit citizens left Valley in 1990, due to mounting violence and a series of murders.

For years now disappearance of Kashmiri youth has been a global concern. Thousands of Kashmiris have gone missing, either in mysterious circumstances or in state custody. Even though the figures projected by state and local human rights bodies are contradictory safe estimates put the number of those missing around seven thousand. By this estimation more than hundred thousand people who are related to these disappeared persons are suffering the trauma. 

The suffering of ‘half-widows’ is a tragic aspect of this issue because the women whose husbands have gone missing are living an uncertain life, their children growing with a huge sense of insecurity.  There has been lot of international focus on this issue with global institutions supporting campaigns in Kashmir. Amidst such complex situation the disappearance of a Pandit boy should have evoked widespread concern among Kashmiri stakeholders. The nature of Sushil’s disappearance may or may not be like other disappearances yet it demanded a sharper response from the government as well as the separatist groups. But, unfortunately, both ignored this issue, triggering further alienation of the non-migrant Pandits. It took a month for main opposition Peoples Democratic Party to react and slam state government over the issue. At a time when mass graves have exposed the reality behind government denials about custodial disappearances and separatist forces too are being blamed for hatching conspiracies against colleagues, it is the moral duty of both mainstream and separatist leaders that they launch a joint effort to trace Sushil Kumar. 

The state government has big stakes in tracing this boy as it is spending huge money to woo back Pandits putting up in Jammu and elsewhere. If the state fails to trace him it will instil a sense of insecurity not just among those willing to return but among those eight thousand who have been living through all sorts of difficulties alongside their Muslim brethren. On the other hand, separatist leaders have taken upon themselves the arduous task of ‘protecting’ the minority community. Notwithstanding the question how can separatists protect minorities in a vicious conflict that is dotted with political massacres and murders, the separatists should side the victim family. 

Investigate the disappearance of Kashmiri Pandit youth: APDP

Srinagar, Apr 28: Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) demanded an investigation into the case of a youth, who has been missing since April 4, from south Kashmir's Anantnag district.

"When it comes to high profile political murders (like the one of Moulvi Showkat Ahmad Shah recently), police swiftly comes out with a chargesheet against some persons without even providing a shred of evidence, but when there are cases like Susheel no one seems to be interested in investigating," APDP said in a statement.

Susheel Raina, 21, of Chandergam village of Anantnag district had left his home to collect his marksheet from college but has not returned since. "Susheel's disappearance is an indicator of the continued phenomenon of people disappearing in Jammu and Kashmir," the APDP said.

APDP, which is an association of the relatives of youths who disappeared over the last 20 years, also held a protest at the Sher-e-Kashmir park in Srinagar demanding "independent and impartial" investigations into the phenomenon of "enforced disappearances".

Kashmiri Pandits (Hindus) fear fresh migration, accuse Kashmir govt of callousness

SRINAGAR, Apr 27 :Accusing the state government of failing to trace the missing Pandit youth from Aishmuqam area All Parties Migrant Coordination Committee (APMCC) today said this scenario might lead to fresh migration among their community members, who are permanently residing in the valley or have recently returned, reports Kashmir Times.

A youth Sushil Raina of Chandigam Aishmuqam went missing on April 4  after he left his home for college to collect the marks sheet. Addressing media persons at missing youths residence at the  Chandrigam village, chairman of coordination committee Vinod Pandit said, "Nearly a month has passed since the Pandit boy went missing but unfortunately the government has been showing callous approach in tracing him."

He said  on one hand the government claims to rehabilitate the migrant KPs if they return to valley but on the other hand the government has failed to provide security to those Pandits who had preferred to stay back or have recently returned to join their duties in the valley.

"If the chief minister was really serious in the return and rehabilitation of  Pandits he would have then visited the family of missing youth and expressed a word of sympathy with them," Vinod said.

He viewed that if any thing bad happens to the missing youth it will create fear psychosis among the Pandit community and might result in fresh migration.

Warning the government of serious repercussions if it fails to trace out the youth, Vinod said, "The APMCC will initiate strong agitation if government does not give a time frame and traces out the missing youth in the given time frame."

He demanded setting up of Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a DIG rank police officer for tracing  the youth. However he hailed the efforts of the local Muslims in trying to look out for the missing youth.

Annual drug consumption in JK Rs 600 Cr

Lavatera cashmeriana : http://jkmpic.blogspot.com

Srinagar, April 27: Warning pharmacists and chemists against Over The Counter (OTC) drug purchase, the Divisional Commissioner, Dr Asghar Samoon Tuesday said annual drug consumption in the State is Rs 600 Crores, reports Rissing  Kashmir.

He convened a high level meeting to discuss and review various drug control methods in the valley. “Rs. 600 crore of medicines are being consumed in the Jammu & Kashmir of which Rs. 400 crore in the Kashmir valley only,” Samoon said.

Expressing serious concern over the rising consumption of drugs, the Divisional Commissioner said the rising drug problem is one of the serious challenges we are facing today.  “No medicines, without prescription of the doctor, should be sold to patients,” he said and warned chemists and pharmacists against OVT.

Directing the Health and education sector to work in tandem to create mass awareness, particularly, among the youth in schools and colleges about the hazardous effects of drug use, he suggested Health Department to come up with the de-addiction centres and provide information on their websites on dos and don’ts for the people suffering from addiction.

Samoon directed the Pharmacists, Chemists and doctors to work with ethics while doing their work.  “Standard treatment protocols need to be followed so that patients don’t develop drug resistance and that there is no misuse of drugs.”

He suggested that a crackdown should be made on malpractices by pharmacists and doctors that no medical representatives should be allowed in OPDs and Casualties.

The Divisional Commissioner also stressed on the need to develop Private Sector in health so as to meet the requirements of the patients. He also stressed on exploring and encouraging other systems of medicine like Homeopathy and Allopathy.

Deputy Controller of Drug and Food Control Organisation, presented a Power Point presentation to highlight the efforts of the department. “The department, for the last year, conducted 8185 inspections out of which 645 samples were lifted from the government and private market and only six were found of standard quality. In addition 13 licenses were cancelled and 28 suspended for violating various provisions of drugs and cosmetics act. The food wing has conducted 16600 inspections and launched   prosecution almost 17 cases. In addition, Rs. 5600 was recovered as fine from 480 persons for smoking at public places,” he said.

The meeting also suggested that requisite training should be provided to those working in the medical and diagnostic field.

Samoon stressed that the Private diagnostic centres have to follow proper norms in space and facilities which should “preferably” be located on the ground floor.

The meeting, besides Principal Government Medical College, Dr. Shahida Mir, Director Health Services, Salim-ur-Rehman, Deputy Director Nazir Ahmed, was attended by Satish Gupta from Drug Control, Director ISM, Dr. Kabir and President of Chemists and Drug Association among other officials.

Naked, starving India, More precious than life itself—Pakistan: Aruna Dati Roy

I NEVER FORGET AUGUST 16: Aruna Dati Roy

I NEVER FORGET AUGUST 16, more than 5,00000 people marched to Pampore, to the village of  Father of Jehad-e-Kashmir Sheikh Abdul Aziz, who was shot down in cold ... : By Aruna Dati Roy

For the past sixty days or so, since about the end of June, the people of Kashm

Publish Post

ir have been free. Free in the most profound sense. They have shrugged off the terror of living their lives in the gun-sights of half-a-million heavily-armed soldiers in the most densely militarised zone in the world.

After 18 years of administering a military occupation, the Indian government's worst nightmare has come true. Having declared that the militant movement has been crushed, it is now faced with a non-violent mass protest, but not the kind it knows how to manage. This one is nourished by people's memory of years of repression in which tens of thousands have been killed, thousands have been 'disappeared', hundreds of thousands tortured, injured, raped and humiliated. That kind of rage, once it finds utterance, cannot easily be tamed, re-bottled and sent back to where it came from.

For all these years, the Indian State, known amongst the knowing as the Deep State, has done everything it can to subvert, suppress, represent, misrepresent, discredit, interpret, intimidate, purchase—and simply snuff out the voice of the Kashmiri people. It has used money (lots of it), violence (lots of it), disinformation, propaganda, torture, elaborate networks of collaborators and informers, terror, imprisonment, blackmail and rigged elections to subdue what democrats would call "the will of the people". But now the Deep State, as Deep States eventually tend to, has tripped on its own hubris and bought into its own publicity. It made the mistake of believing that domination was victory, that the 'normalcy' it had enforced through the barrel of a gun was indeed normal, and that the people's sullen silence was acquiescence.

People's movement: Protesters march towards the UN office in Srinagar
The well-endowed peace industry, speaking on people's behalf, informed us that "Kashmiris are tired of violence and want peace". What kind of peace they were willing to settle for was never clarified. Bollywood's cache of Kashmir/Muslim-terrorist films has brainwashed most Indians into believing that all of Kashmir's sorrows could be laid at the door of evil, people-hating terrorists.

To anybody who cared to ask, or, more importantly, to listen, it was always clear that even in their darkest moments, people in Kashmir had kept the fires burning and that it was not peace they yearned for, but freedom too. Over the last two months, the carefully confected picture of an innocent people trapped between 'two guns', both equally hated, has, pardon the pun, been shot to hell.

The Indian government's worst nightmare has come true. Having declared that the militant movement has been crushed, it is now faced with a non-violent mass protest, but not the kind it knows how to manage.   

A sudden twist of fate, an ill-conceived move over the transfer of 100 acres of state forest land to the Amarnath Shrine Board (which manages the annual Hindu pilgrimage to a cave deep in the Kashmir Himalayas) suddenly became the equivalent of tossing a lit match into a barrel of petrol. Until 1989, the Amarnath pilgrimage used to attract about 20,000 people who travelled to the Amarnath cave over a period of about two weeks. In 1990, when the overtly Islamic militant uprising in the Valley coincided with the spread of virulent Hindutva in the Indian plains, the number of pilgrims began to increase exponentially. By 2008, more than 5,00,000 pilgrims visited the Amarnath cave in large groups, their passage often sponsored by Indian business houses. To many people in the Valley, this dramatic increase in numbers was seen as an aggressive political statement by an increasingly Hindu-fundamentalist Indian State. Rightly or wrongly, the land transfer was viewed as the thin edge of the wedge. It triggered an apprehension that it was the beginning of an elaborate plan to build Israeli-style settlements, and change the demography of the Valley. Days of massive protest forced the Valley to shut down completely. Within hours, the protests spread from the cities to villages. Young stone-pelters took to the streets and faced armed police who fired straight at them, killing several. For people as well as the government, it resurrected memories of the uprising in the early '90s. Throughout the weeks of protest, hartal and police firing, while the Hindutva publicity machine charged Kashmiris with committing every kind of communal excess, the 5,00,000 Amarnath pilgrims completed their pilgrimage, not just unhurt, but touched by the hospitality they had been shown by local people.

Eventually, taken completely by surprise at the ferocity of the response, the government revoked the land transfer. But by then the land transfer had become what senior separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani called a "non-issue".

Massive protests against the revocation erupted in Jammu. There, too, the issue snowballed into something much bigger. Hindus began to raise issues of neglect and discrimination by the Indian State. (For some odd reason they blamed Kashmiris for that neglect.) The protests led to the blockading of the Jammu-Srinagar highway, the only functional road link between Kashmir and India. The army was called out to clear the highway and allow safe passage of trucks between Jammu and Srinagar. But incidents of violence against Kashmiri truckers were being reported from as far away as Punjab where there was no protection at all. As a result, Kashmiri truckers, fearing for their lives, refused to drive on the highway. Truckloads of perishable fresh fruit and Valley produce began to rot. It became very obvious that the blockade had caused the situation to spin out of control. The government announced that the blockade had been cleared and that trucks were going through. Embedded sections of the Indian media, quoting the inevitable 'Intelligence' sources, began to refer to it as a 'perceived' blockade, and even to suggest that there had never been one.

Flaming chinars: People climb atop trees to hear Hurriyat leaders
But it was too late for those games, the damage had been done. It had been demonstrated in no uncertain terms to people in Kashmir that they lived on sufferance, and that if they didn't behave themselves they could be put under siege, starved, deprived of essential commodities and medical supplies. The real blockade became a psychological one. The last fragile link between India and Kashmir was all but snapped.

To expect matters to end there was of course absurd. Hadn't anybody noticed that in Kashmir even minor protests about civic issues like water and electricity inevitably turned into demands for azadi? To threaten them with mass starvation amounted to committing political suicide.

Hadn't anybody noticed that in Kashmir even minor protests about civic issues like water and electricity inevitably turned into demands for azadi? To threaten them with mass starvation amounted to committing political suicide.   

Not surprisingly, the voice that the Government of India has tried so hard to silence in Kashmir has massed into a deafening roar. Hundreds of thousands of unarmed people have come out to reclaim their cities, their streets and mohallas. They have simply overwhelmed the heavily armed security forces by their sheer numbers, and with a remarkable display of raw courage.

Raised in a playground of army camps, checkposts and bunkers, with screams from torture chambers for a soundtrack, the young generation has suddenly discovered the power of mass protest, and above all, the dignity of being able to straighten their shoulders and speak for themselves, represent themselves. For them it is nothing short of an epiphany. They're in full flow, not even the fear of death seems to hold them back. And once that fear has gone, of what use is the largest or second-largest army in the world? What threat does it hold? Who should know that better than the people of India who won their independence in the way that they did?

The circumstances in Kashmir being what they are, it is hard for the spin doctors to fall back on the same old same old; to claim that it's all the doing of Pakistan's ISI, or that people are being coerced by militants. Since the '30s onwards, the question of who can claim the right to represent that elusive thing known as "Kashmiri sentiment" has been bitterly contested. Was it Sheikh Abdullah? The Muslim Conference? Who is it today? The mainstream political parties? The Hurriyat? The militants? This time around, the people are in charge. There have been mass rallies in the past, but none in recent memory that have been so sustained and widespread. The mainstream political parties of Kashmir—the National Conference, the People's Democratic Party—feted by the Deep State and the Indian media despite the pathetic voter turnout in election after election appear dutifully for debates in New Delhi's TV studios, but can't muster the courage to appear on the streets of Kashmir. The armed militants who, through the worst years of repression, were seen as the only ones carrying the torch of azadi forward, if they are around at all, seem to be content to take a backseat and let people do the fighting for a change.

Everywhere in chains: But it's no barricade to freedom
The separatist leaders who do appear and speak at the rallies are not leaders so much as followers, being guided by the phenomenal spontaneous energy of a caged, enraged people that has exploded on Kashmir's streets. The leaders, such as they are, have been presented with a full-blown revolution. The only condition seems to be that they have to do as the people say. If they say things that people do not wish to hear, they are gently persuaded to come out, publicly apologise and correct their course. This applies to all of them, including Syed Ali Shah Geelani who at a public rally recently proclaimed himself the movement's only leader. It was a monumental political blunder that very nearly shattered the fragile new alliance between the various factions of the struggle. Within hours he retracted his statement. Like it or not, this is democracy. No democrat can pretend otherwise.

Day after day, hundreds of thousands of people swarm around places that hold terrible memories for them. They demolish bunkers, break through cordons of concertina wire and stare straight down the barrels of soldiers' machine-guns, saying what very few in India want to hear. Hum kya chahte? Azadi! We Want Freedom. And, it has to be said, in equal numbers and with equal intensity: Jeevey Jeevey Pakistan. Long live Pakistan.

This time around, the people are in charge. The armed militants, who through the worst years of repression were seen carrying the torch of azadi, are content to let people do the fighting. The separatist leaders are not leaders so much as followers.   

That sound reverberates through the Valley like the drumbeat of steady rain on a tin roof, like the roll of thunder before an electric storm. It's the plebiscite that was never held, the referendum that has been indefinitely postponed.

On August 15, India's Independence Day, the city of Srinagar shut down completely. The Bakshi stadium where Governor N.N. Vohra hoisted the flag was empty except for a few officials. Hours later, Lal Chowk, the nerve centre of the city (where in 1992, Murli Manohar Joshi, BJP leader and mentor of the controversial "Hinduisation" of children's history textbooks, started a tradition of flag-hoisting by the Border Security Force), was taken over by thousands of people who hoisted the Pakistani flag and wished each other "Happy belated Independence Day" (Pakistan celebrates Independence on August 14) and "Happy Slavery Day". Humour, obviously, has survived India's many torture centres and Abu Ghraibs in Kashmir.

On August 16, more than 5,00,000 people marched to Pampore, to the village of  Father of Jehad-e-Kashmir Sheikh Abdul Aziz, who was shot down in cold blood five days earlier. He was part of a massive march to the Line of Control demanding that since the Jammu road had been blocked, it was only logical that the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad highway be opened for goods and people, the way it used to be before Kashmir was partitioned.

Goodbye, fear: A police post being dismantled in Srinagar
On August 18, an equal number gathered in Srinagar in the huge TRC grounds (Tourist Reception Centre, not the Truth and Reconciliation Committee) close to the United Nations Military Observers Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to submit a memorandum asking for three things—the end to Indian rule, the deployment of a UN Peacekeeping Force and an investigation into two decades of war crimes committed with almost complete impunity by the Indian army and police.

The day before the rally the Deep State was hard at work. A senior journalist friend called to say that late in the afternoon the home secretary called a high-level meeting in New Delhi. Also present were the defence secretary and the intelligence chiefs. The purpose of the meeting, he said, was to brief the editors of TV news channels that the government had reason to believe that the insurrection was being managed by a small splinter cell of the ISI and to request the channels to keep this piece of exclusive, highly secret intelligence in mind while covering (or preferably not covering?) the news from Kashmir. Unfortunately for the Deep State, things have gone so far that TV channels, were they to obey those instructions, would run the risk of looking ridiculous. Thankfully, it looks as though this revolution will, after all, be televised.

Replace the word Islam with the word Hindutva, replace the word Pakistan with Hindustan, replace the sea of green flags with saffron ones and you have BJP's nightmare vision of an ideal India.   

On the night of August 17, the police sealed the city. Streets were barricaded, thousands of armed police manned the barriers. The roads leading into Srinagar were blocked. For the first time in eighteen years, the police had to plead with Hurriyat leaders to address the rally at the TRC grounds instead of marching right up to the UNMOGIP office which is on Gupkar Road, Srinagar's Green Zone where, for years, the Indian Establishment has barricaded itself in style and splendour.

On the morning of the 18th, people began pouring into Srinagar from villages and towns across the Valley. In trucks, tempos, jeeps, buses and on foot. Once again, barriers were broken and people reclaimed their city. The police were faced with a choice of either stepping aside or executing a massacre. They stepped aside. Not a single bullet was fired.

The city floated on a sea of smiles. There was ecstasy in the air. Everyone had a banner; houseboat owners, traders, students, lawyers, doctors. One said, "We are all prisoners, set us free." Another said, "Democracy without freedom is Demon-crazy". Demon Crazy. That was a good one. Perhaps he was referring to the twisted logic of a country that needed to commit communal carnage in order to bolster its secular credentials. Or the insanity that permits the world's largest democracy to administer the world's largest military occupation and continue to call itself a democracy.

There was a green flag on every lamp post, every roof, every bus stop and on the top of chinar trees.

Of course, there are many ways for the Indian State to hold on to Kashmir. A few strategic massacres, a couple of targeted assassinations, some disappearances and a round of arrests should do the trick for a few more years.   

A big one fluttered outside the All India Radio building. Road signs to Hazratbal, Batmaloo, Sopore were painted over. Rawalpindi they said. Or simply Pakistan. It would be a mistake to assume that the public expression of affection for Pakistan automatically translates into a desire to accede to Pakistan. Some of it has to do with gratitude for the support—cynical or otherwise—for what Kashmiris see as a freedom struggle and the Indian State sees as a terrorist campaign. It also has to do with mischief. With saying and doing what galls India, the enemy, most of all. (It's easy to scoff at the idea of a 'freedom struggle' that wishes to distance itself from a country that is supposed to be a democracy and align itself with another that has, for the most part, been ruled by military dictators. A country whose army has committed genocide in what is now Bangladesh. A country that is even now being torn apart by its own ethnic war. These are important questions, but right now perhaps it's more useful to wonder what this so-called democracy did in Kashmir to make people hate it so.)

Everywhere there were Pakistani flags, everywhere the cry, Pakistan se rishta kya? La ilaha illa llah. What is our bond with Pakistan? There is no god but Allah. Azadi ka matlab kya? La ilaha illallah. What does Freedom mean? There is no god but Allah.

For somebody like myself, who is not Muslim, that interpretation of freedom is hard—if not impossible—to understand. I asked a young woman whether freedom for Kashmir would not mean less freedom for her, as a woman. She shrugged and said, "What kind of freedom do we have now? The freedom to be raped by Indian soldiers?" Her reply silenced me.

She's no terrorist: A woman pelts stones at policemen
Standing in the grounds of the TRC, surrounded by a sea of green flags, it was impossible to doubt or ignore the deeply Islamic nature of the uprising taking place around me. It was equally impossible to label it a vicious, terrorist jehad. For Kashmiris, it was a catharsis. A historical moment in a long and complicated struggle for freedom with all the imperfections, cruelties and confusions that freedom struggles have. This one cannot by any means call itself pristine, and will always be stigmatised by, and will some day, I hope, have to account for—among other things—the brutal killings of Kashmiri Pandits in the early years of the uprising, culminating in the exodus of almost the entire community from the Kashmir Valley.

What will free Kashmir be like? Will the hundreds of thousands of Kashmiri Pandits living in exile be allowed to return, paid reparations for their losses?   

As the crowd continued to swell, I listened carefully to the slogans, because rhetoric often clarifies things and holds the key to all kinds of understanding. I'd heard many of them before, a few years ago, at a militant's funeral. A new one, obviously coined after the blockade, was Kashmir ki mandi! Rawalpindi! (It doesn't lend itself to translation, but it means—Kashmir's marketplace? Rawalpindi!) Another was Khooni lakir tod do, aar paar jod do (Break down the blood-soaked Line of Control, let Kashmir be united again). There were plenty of insults and humiliation for India: Ay jabiron ay zalimon, Kashmir hamara chhod do (Oh oppressors, Oh wicked ones, Get out of our Kashmir). Jis Kashmir ko khoon se seencha, woh Kashmir hamara hai (The Kashmir we have irrigated with our blood, that Kashmir is ours!).

The slogan that cut through me like a knife and clean broke my heart was this one: Nanga bhookha Hindustan, jaan se pyaara Pakistan (Naked, starving India, More precious than life itself—Pakistan). Why was it so galling, so painful to listen to this? I tried to work it out and settled on three reasons. First, because we all know that the first part of the slogan is the embarrassing and unadorned truth about India, the emerging superpower. Second, because all Indians who are not nanga or bhookha are—and have been—complicit in complex and historical ways with the cruel cultural and economic systems that make Indian society so cruel, so vulgarly unequal.

Former Prime Minister Jammu and Kashmir favored armed uprising in 1953: Report

http://writerasia.blogspot.com/2011/04/former-prime-minister-jammu-and-kashmir.htmlSrinagar, Apr 23: Legendary Kashmiri leader Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah had urged people of Kashmir to fight India on the lines of Algerian militants, reveals fresh collection, reports leading paper Rissing Kashmir.

of Sheikh’s speeches compiled by a local author here. According to the report Sheikh in a speech delivered on Martyrs’ Day, 13 July 1953, had said, “These martyrs have prepared us for bigger sacrifices to achieve our freedom and our right of self-determination. If required, our youth would not desist from fighting a liberation war on the lines of Algerian people.”

Shabnam Qayoom, a Kashmiri writer, has compiled the report in response to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s wish to set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Kashmir that would probe into incidents of violence and murder which occurred since 1990. Interestingly the 64-page report is dedicated to Omar Abdullah. A short note at the outset says, “Whom we found different than his father and grandfather and who wishes to heal Kashmiris’ wounds, and who has no qualms in the expression of truth.”  Qayoom claims that his compilation would help Omar in his efforts to find out the truth behind the happenings of past two decades.  The author has put together twenty-nine speech extracts and statements given out by Sheikh Abdullah during his party meetings, interviews to local and foreign journalists and religious gatherings at Hazratbal.

“…The 1947 accession with India was imposed on us because government of India had declined to help us (against Pak raiders) unless we acceded (to the Union of India)…This accession could be considered final only after referred to people for their ratification,” the report quotes Sheikh as said during a working committee meet of National Conference on 4 June 1953. During an interaction with then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru’s advisor Dr Subramanian in Kud Jail on 17 October 1955, Sheikh is quoted as having said, “I remember those horrible consequences which were brought out by our decision to seek military assistance from India. I don’t mind saying that we brought you here for our security but you stayed put as our occupiers. How can I forget, you breached my trust as well as your base in Kashmir.”

According to the excerpt of the same interaction “…I regret my mistake of coming in the way of merger with Pakistan. I had fears that they won’t treat me well, but I was wrong. Now I feel backstabbed, I no longer trust Indian rulers, we have different ways now.”

In a significant speech at Martyrs’ Graveyard in Old City on 13 July 1953, Sheikh, according to Qayoom’s report, had dared both India and Pakistan that people of J&K would never become minions of one or the other country and predicted that people of Kashmir would follow Algerians to take up gun. “We are indebted to our martyrs for achieving freedom and we are ready to offer any kind of sacrifice achieve our freedom and right of self-determination.”

According to the speech extract, Sheikh further said that India’s ruling elite was not sincere and “freedom cannot be begged, for this you need to adopt other means also”.

The author’s opinion is appended to the report in three parts comprising “Why boys pick up stones,”, “Why youth go missing” and “Two years of present government”.

Tracing the origins of anger among youth to the rigging in elections of 1987, the author argues, “Farooq Abdullah should not have got upset over the winning of Muslim groups. Their winning would have led to a power tussle and they would have broken apart over the issue of Chief Minister’s chair or portfolios. After all those who cannot stand united after two decades of bloody movement, how could they agree on a join power structure? That would have brought Farooq back to the center stage after fall of the MUF government.”

The report Tehqeeq aur Talash was released on the sidelines of a literary function held in Dak Bungalow Islamabad (Anantnag) on April 20. Journalists, top Police and civil officials besides social activists were present in the gathering.

1987 elections forced Kashmiris to take arms : BJP

Jammu, Apr 23: In a noteworthy statement, a senior state BJP leader Saturday said the rigged elections of 1987 forced United Jihad Council (UJC) chief Muhammad Yousuf Shah alias Syed Salah-ud-Din to take to arms, reports Greater Kashmir.

“Faulty administrative functioning in the state and rigged assembly elections of 1987 forced the UJC chief Syed Salah-ud-Din to pick up the gun,” former union minister of state for defence and BJP legislature party leader, Chaman Lal Gupta told reporters here today.

“If we go into the history of Jammu and Kashmir, former minister Ghulam Mohi-ud-Din Shah, who was losing 1987 assembly elections with a huge margin, was declared winner on the directions of the then government. Everybody knows that Syed Salah-ud-Din who was at that time in mainstream and had contested the said election was forced to pick up the gun alongwith his colleagues following mass rigging of that election by the government,” Gupta said.

Gupta made these remarks in the backdrop of action against him by the party high-command for cross-voting in the recent Legislative Council polls which he said were also `rigged’.

“This is also the matter of probe that whether our seven MLAs have betrayed the party or not. There should be probe as how seven MLAs cross-voted. Mera Yeh Maanana Hai Ki Yahan Par Bahut Kuch Hota Hai (Anything is possible in Jammu and Kashmir,” he remarked.

Gupta said a bigger conspiracy was being hatched by “external and internal forces” aimed at taking Jammu and Kashmir to the pre-1953 position.

“Some external forces in collusion with internal forces are bent upon to take the state to the pre-1953 position by implementing the recommendations of Interlocutors. These external forces couldn’t succeed unless they get the logical support of internal forces (insiders),” the BJP leader said.

He said all-out efforts were being made to implement the recommendations of the Interlocutors who have recommended pre-1953 status for Jammu and Kashmir. “These elements are bent upon denting BJP’s image as they know that it is the only party which could oppose all such manipulations and fight against these forces,” he said, adding “All such developments and attempts will harm the interests of Jammu.”

He alleged that attempts were also being made to uproot BJP from Jammu and Kashmir.

Gupta, who is among the seven MLAs suspended of the party high command for cross-voting in April 13 LC polls, also questioned the suspension, saying the central leadership should make public the parameters and criteria for singling out seven MLAs while sparing other four in cross-voting fiasco.

On Friday, two suspended MLAs of the party, Baldev Raj Sharma and Lal Chand had also questioned the central leadership’s action and had asked the party high command to show the evidence and criteria on the basis of which seven MLAs were suspended.

Gupta termed the cross-voting fiasco as “unprecedented tragedy” and “unforgivable”, saying the incident is “highly condemnable” and it never happened in the history of the BJP.

He, however, denied that he has “betrayed” the party and remarked, “Time and again I have proved my loyalty. It was highly painful moment of my life when I was included among those seven MLAs who were suspended for cross-voting. I want to fully deny it as I have never betrayed the party and whatever party high command directed me, I followed that with full zeal and honesty.”

“I want to know as to what parameters they have used to single-out the seven MLAs while sparing the other four. The criterion should be made public and the decision should be judicious so that public come to know who the real culprits were,” he demanded.

Meanwhile, in virtual revolt against the party action, another BJP MLA, Prof Gharu Ram, has requested the Speaker Muhammad Akbar Lone to “treat his resignation withdrawn” as and when forwarded to him by the BJP high command.

Joining other five suspended MLAs, Gharu Ram shot a letter to the Speaker, requesting him to turn down his resignation if the BJP high command forwards it to him.

Sources said that he also reposed faith in the leadership of Chaman Lal Gutpa, saying he was their leader in the Legislative Assembly.

On Thursday, five BJP legislators had met the Speaker and gave in writing that the resignation letters which they gave to the party high command should be considered withdrawn.

Jammu and Kashmir Peoples League pays glowing homage to S. HAMID WANI

Srinagar, April 21 : The Jammu and Kashmir Peoples League, a constituent of All Parties Hurriyat Conference summons an important meeting at its party headquarters Rajbagh Srinagar in which Peoples League pays glowing tributes to Shaheed-e-Inkilaab (Martyr of Revolution) S. Hamid Wani: attended by Senior Peoples League Leaders, which include, Mohammad Ashraf Sofi, Mohammad Maqbool Sofi, Ghulam Qadir Rah, Imtiyaz Reshi, Gh. Nabi Waseem, Nazir Ahmad Khan, Gh Ahmad Mir and dozens of PL Activists. In the meeting rich tributes were paid to the martyr who is ascribed to be amongst the frontline Pro-freedom leaders of 70’s and was one of the founders of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) - which represents the aspiration of Kashmiris politically, diplomatically and socially.

While speaking in the colloquium Senior Hurriyat Leader and Acting Chairman Jammu Kashmir Peoples League, Mukhtar Ahmad Waza said that the sacrifices of Kashmiri martyrs had centre-staged the Kashmir dispute at the international level. He reiterated the pledge to continue the liberation struggle, despite all odds.

Mr. Waza urges India to show seriousness in resolving the Kashmir dispute issue and added that Kashmir dispute was not a border dispute between India and Pakistan but a question of the future of Kashmiri people. He reiterated that without the inclusion of Kashmiris’ genuine leadership, the dialogue process between Pakistan and India would remain meaningless, as the people of Kashmir were the main party in the dispute. Waza said that the easiest solution available to resolve the 63-year-old dispute was implementation of the resolutions passed by the United Nations. “As long as the Kashmir dispute is not resolved, neither would political uncertainty end in the South Asia nor can the people of the region realize the dream of prosperity and development,” he maintained.

It is worth to mention that S Hamid Wani was arrested by the Indian police and killed in custody on April 18, 1998 in Soura Srinagar; Peoples League said that the sacrifices of Kashmiri martyrs would not be allowed to go waste and their mission would be taken to its logical conclusion.

APHC Constituent Excluded for Meeting Interlocutors

Srinagar | Apr 20, 2011: Separatist Kashmiri group Hurriyat Conference headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq today suspended its constituent Itehad-ul-Muslimeen (IuM) after the chief patron of the party Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari met the Centre's interlocutors on Kashmir here.

"We have suspended IuM for violating the Hurriyat decision on the issue of meeting the interlocutors appointed by Government of India," Mirwaiz told PTI.

Ansari, a former chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, met the interlocutors panel headed by veteran journalist Dileep Padgaonkar today.

The IuM is among the founder constituents of Hurriyat Conference and one of the seven parties which have representative in the highest decision-making body, the Executive Committee.

Mirwaiz said the suspension will remain in force till the next meeting of the executive body of the amalgam which is likely to take place sometime next week.

"Although IuM is represented by Ansari's son, Maulana Masroor Abbas Ansari in the Hurriyat meetings, the party is a member of the amalgam and should have abided by the Hurriyat decision," he said.

Ansari was the chairman of the Hurriyat Conference when  leader  Ali Shah Geelani had engineered a split in the amalgam for the failure of the leadership to run an effective boycott campaign in the 2002 Assembly elections.

Kashmir Horticulture and Hazel Nut Plants

Medicinal plants: http://jkmpic.blogspot.com

By: Sheikh ASHRAF
Srinagar, April 19: The diverse Agro-climatic conditions of Kashmir valey offer great potential for growing a variety of fruits, flowers and medicinal plants like Apple, Cherry, Kiwi, Hazel Nut, Plum, Olive, Strawbery, Pecan-nut, Walnut, Almond, Howthorn, Pear, Lukat, Saffron, Platanus orientalis, Oak-Quercus robur,  Malus communis, Prunus armeniaca, Prunus serotina, Cedrus deodar,  Ginkgo biloba, Wild Cherry, Sweet Chestnut Cypress  cashmiriana, Aesculus Hippocastanum, Sorbus cashmeriana, Cataegus oxyacantha Linn, Saussurea costus, Viola odorata Linn, Atropa belladona Linn, Urtica dioica Linn, Salix alba Linn, Geranium wallichianum, Amaranthus caudatus Linn, Allium victoralis Linn, Althaea officinalis Linn, Colchicum lutem, Crocus yellow, Iris ensata, Mallow-Malva Sylvestris.

The Hazelnut orchard of around 13000 trees are planted  in Jammu and Kashmir Medicinal Plants Introduction Centre's R&D Centre near Sonamarg in North Kashmir . Initial planting began in 1998 and the trees are now well established and producing quality nuts for the worldwide marketplace. More than 30,000 plants are ready for sale purpose.
For more details: http://jkmpic.blogspot.com
e-mail: jkmpic@gmail.com
Ph: 01933-223705
Mob: 09858986794

Kashmiri Pandits, Hindus in Kashmir, Pakistan, India, UAE, KAS

Return to your homeland: Geelani tells migrant Pandits
Quotes Mahabarata, Says Kashmir struggle Based On Principles

Vesu (Kulgam), Apr 17: The Hurriyat Conference (G) Chairman Syed Ali Geelani Sunday reiterated that the Kashmiri migrant Pandits were an inseparable part of his body and made a passionate appeal to them to return to their homeland and live in harmony with the Muslim brothers and sisters, reports KHALID GUL in Greater Kashmir.

 Addressing a gathering of Kashmiri Pandits at Migrant Pandit’s colony in this south Kashmir district, Geelani assured them of complete protection if they return “You are a part of our body. I assure you that you will be fully protected. We will make sure that no harm is done to your lives and property,” Geelani told the Pandits.

He rejected the idea of setting up “safety zones” for them. “This gives a sense of divide between the Muslims and the Hindus,” Geelani said. “When I was released after two years from jail in 1992, I made it clear that the Pandit brothers are a part of our great heritage and we have to live in coexistence under all circumstances. I reject the idea of creating safe zones for the Pandit community. This gives a sense of divide between the two communities.”

Geelani told the gathering that “you must appeal to the government to allow you to return to your original places in villages, towns and cities. We have centuries old traditions of sharing each others’ joys and sorrows. Those traditions are dear to us and have to be reestablished. We have to strengthen our bonds.”

Geelani alleged that it is the state government that, for its own interest, wants to divide the Kashmiri nation on the basis of religion. “The divide and rule is its well thought out policy. I don’t want you to put up in the separate colonies in the name of safe zones where your privacy is at stake. With the help of God and on behalf of the 90 percent Muslim majority in Kashmir, I assure you that your temples, lives, property and honor would be protected by us as you return to your original homes,” he told the members of the Pandit community. “You are not the migrants but the real citizens of this land. None of you will face any harm from your Muslim brothers. I assure you that.”

Referring to Holy Quran, Geelani said: “Allah does not discriminate between human beings on the basis of religion, caste, color, creed, wealth or poverty, rural or urban origin. Every individual is a human being first and the caste is only for his identification. To be a good human being one must have a good character,” Geelani said.

Asserting that the freedom struggle of Kashmir was based on principles, Geelani said: “Our fight with India is not because it is a Hindu majority country. It is the battle of principles. We are fighting for our rights and the promises that were made to us must be kept.”

He said peace cannot be achieved at gunpoint, but had to be established through justice alone.
 “On one hand government talks of peace and at the same time books minors under the Public Safety Act and detains them in Jammu jails,” he said

He said the people of Kashmir are not being provided a space to even peacefully raise their voice against “the state oppression.” “Since 2010 I have been confined to my house by the police and it has been only last Friday that I was allowed to offer Friday prayers in a local Masjid,” Geelani said.

He said history was testimony to the fact that truth has always prevailed in its battle with might. He urged the Pandit community to feel the pain of their Muslim brethren.

“Our peaceful protests are showered with bullets. The forces do not even spare 10-year-old.  We are not carrying weapons in our hands but are peacefully demanding our rights like India did when it was under the British occupation,” Geelani said. “The troops have occupied more than 28 lakh kanals of land including that of forests in Kashmir which is not only the property of Kashmiri Muslims but Pandits too. Our natural resources are being exploited. The government and the forces are looting the green gold.  The power that we generate is being sold outside while we are being denied even our own share.”

Geelani said that even the temples are now in the custody of non-state subjects instead of the Kashmiri Pandits.

Earlier, National Youth president of Lok Jan Shakti Party (LJP) and the patron of the Kashmir Pandit Amity Council, Sanjay Saraf accorded a warm welcome to the veteran leader.

“Geelani sahib is the only leader who always advocates return of Kashmiri Pandits. The Pandits who are here have not returned on the assurances of state government but only because of the assurance of Geelani sahib and majority community,” Saraf said.

PTI ADDS
Taking out a leaf from the Mahabharata, Geelani narrated the famous conversation between Arjuna and Lord Krishna when Pandavas were taking on the Kaurvas.

 “When Arjuna faltered in the fight against Kaurvas, Maharaj Krishna told him that it was a battle based on principles. You have to fight even own brothers for principles,” Geelani said while asserting that his struggle was based on principles.

When Geelani left the camp, the villagers gathered around him shouting pro-freedom slogans and forced him to lead the Zuhar prayers in the local Jamia. After the prayers Geelani addressed the people outside the mosque too.

Later, Syed Ali Shah Geelani visited another migrant camp at Mattan in Islamabad (Anantnag) district where he too was accorded a warm welcome. He interacted with many Pandit youth and assured them full protection.

Geelani also visited the houses of some of the youth of Islamabad (Anantnag) town who were killed in the last year’s summer unrest. He visited the houses of Sujat-ul-Islam, Ishtiyaq Ahmad Khanday, Irshad Ahmad Latoo, Irshad Parray, Noor-ul-Amin Dagga, Bilal Najar and Rajoo Nath. The youth who had gathered outside shouted pro-freedom and pro-Geelani slogans. He was also accompanied by the party spokesperson, Ayaz Akbar

Sout-ul- Haq Chief among 3 arrested ‘Rival group hatched plan with militant aid’

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Srinagar, April 17: Police Saturday claimed to have solved the murder case of Jamiat Ahlehadith president Moulana Showkat Ahmad Shah by arresting three persons including the chief of religio-political organization Sout-ul-Haq. Police also claimed that Jamiat’s rival group had hatched the conspiracy to eliminate Maulana with militant support, reports Asem Mohiuddin in Rissing Kashmir.

Addressing media persons here, IGP Kashmir S M Sahai said after killing of Jamiat president in IED blast on April 8, police had set the investigation into motion.“During the probe, the criminal conspiracy behind the killing was unearthed,” he said.

“Some of the members of Jamiat Ahlehadith had shown displeasure over the working of Moulana. They alongwith members of religio-political organization Sout-ul-Haq attempted to dislodge him from the post through electoral process in 2010. However, they could not achieve their goal through electoral process and took an extreme step to assassinate Maulana and hatched the conspiracy to eliminate him,” he claimed.

Sahai said detained Muslim League chairman, Dr Qasim Faktoo who is serving life time imprisonment, hatched the conspiracy with Abdul Gani Dar alias Abdullah Gazalli, president of Sout-ul-Haq after later visited him in jail and discussed the broad contours of conspiracy. 

He claimed that the actual execution of the plan was left to one Javaid Ahmad Munshi alias Bill Papa of Chanapora, Srinagar who sought help from Lashkar Commander Abdullah Uni. “He received some material from Abdullah Uni from Sopore and arranged some of it locally. Various parts of execution were done by various other members. However, the actual triggering of the IED was entrusted to one Nisar Ahmad Khan alias Ishaq of Chanapora,” he said.

“The IED was prepared by Javid Ahmad and he handed over it to Nissar, who planted it near mosque gate and exploded it with remote control when Moulana was entering the mosque on April 8,” IGP claimed.

He said, “The conspirators were also in touch with Jameel-ur-Rehman, general secretary of Muzaffarabad based United Jihad Council. The conspirators saw Moulana’s efforts to establish  Transworld University” in Kashmir as his  compromise with the government. His proximity with certain separatist leaders was also not liked by them”.

“Moulana’s engagement in defusing the sectarian clashes and not allowing his organization to work on the separatist front had also not gone well with these people. Due to his (Moulana’s) efforts to keep Jamiat-e-Ahlehadith away from separatist politics, some members in the organization were not happy with his functioning,” he said.

“Police have arrested Abdullah Gazalli, Bill Papa and Nisar, who are prime accused in executing the murder. Further arrests are expected in connection of the killing as the investigations are on,” IGP added.

Moulana Showkat's murder case solved: J&K Police

Srinagar: April 16: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday claimed that the murder case of Jamait-e Ahli Hadith president, Moualana Showkat has been cracked by arresting three militants of  Tehreek-ul- Mujahideen.

Inspector General Police, Kashmir, SM Sahai told a news conference that police have arrested Javed Ahmad, Nisar Ahmad Khan and Abdul Gani Dar on charges of Maulana's murder.

The IGP said that it was Nisar Ahmad who triggered the low intensity Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in uptown Maisuma which killed Maulana Showkat.

India is interested in Kazakhstan's uranium

Srinagar, April 15 : India's attempts to make some headway in the Great Game in Central Asia may be the reason behind Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Kazakhstan, says Rediff.com's Nikhil Lakshman, who is travelling with the PM to the Kazakh capital of Sanya

After spending three days interacting with the Brazilian, Chinese, Russian and South African Presidents in Sanya, southern China, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh flew across the expanse of East Asia to Astana, Kazakhstan's flashy new capital.

One colleague on Air India One, the prime minister's special flight, asked this reporter why the 78-year-old prime minister was making this tiring journey (a 7 hour, 20 minute flight) after all those hectic interactions in China when no relationship-transforming agreements currently appear on the anvil in Kazakhstan.

Three reasons: Geography. Natural Resources. Strategic relevance.

And, oh, did we mention China?

When Dr Singh meets President Nursultan Nazarbayev at the Ak Orda, the presidential palace, on Saturday morning, he will be the first world leader to meet the Kazakh leader after his April 3 election victory (eat your heart out Indian politicians, Nazarbayev won 95.5 per cent of the vote).

It will also be the first visit by an Indian prime minister since June 4, 2002 when then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Kazakhstan's then capital Almaty for the first CICA summit. The Conference on Interaction and Confidence Measures in Asia is Nazarbayev's personal multilateral diplomatic initiative to ensure that Central Asia, where Kazakhstan is the biggest nation, stays calm.

No Indian leader can stay away from Central Asia for so long especially when China appears, in the opinion of some observers, to be the 'only great power pursuing a coordinated strategy in Central Asia,' expanding trade and exploiting the region's natural resources.

China has an impressive footprint in Kazakhstan, already. In February, during Nazarbayev's visit to Beijing (he visits the Chinese capital every year), Kazakhstan agreed to supply uranium pellets to Chinese nuclear plants, a deal worth billions of dollars.

Kazakhstan has the second largest uranium deposits in the world, more than 15 per cent. This year, Kazakhstan will produce 19,600 tonnes of uranium; it has enough reserves to last more than a hundred years.

India too is interested in Kazakhstan's uranium and Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Dr Sukumar Banerjee is already in Astana to discuss an agreement on possible supplies. The DAE and Kazakh's nuclear establishment are also likely to work on a feasibility report to provide Indian small reactor technology to the Kazakhs.

Interestingly, the four groups the DAE set up in the wake of the Fukushima disaster last month to examine the state of readiness at India's nuclear reactors to deal with a catastrophe like the one that befell the nuclear plant in Japan will submit their reports soon.

The DAE committees, sources said, are likely to review among other things, the review criteria for sites to locate future nuclear reactors as well as operating measures at plants like the nuclear facilities in Tamil Nadu. Eventually, the government plans to make these DAE reports public, the sources added.

Two hundred thousands of people held a forceful demonstration in Srinagar

Srinagar, April 15 (Writer-South Asia): In disputed state of  Kashmir,  2 hundred thousands of people held a forceful demonstration in Srinagar, today, to condemn the murder of leading Kashmiri religious scholar, Maulana Showkat Ahmad Shah, who was martyred in a blast in Srinagar, last Friday, reports Kashmir Media Watch.

Those who participated in the protest included the APHC Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Sheikh Muhammad Hasan, Agha Syed Hassan Almoosvi, Maulana Abbas Ansari, Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Ghulam Rasool Malik, Javed Ahmad Mir, Hakim Abdur Rasheed and Maulana Ghulam Rasool Noori.

The speakers said on the occasion that the perpetrators of the killing of innocent people would be exposed at all costs.

Senior APHC leader, Shabbir Ahmad Shah addressing a public gathering at Pinglish in Tral urged India to withdraw its troops from the occupied territory and pave way for tripartite talks to resolve the Kashmir dispute.

The Director of Kashmir Institute of Strategic Studies, Khalid Jehangir, talking to the visiting Kashmir Study Group of Bharatiya Janata Party in Srinagar, said that the resolution of Kashmir dispute was vital to peace and stability in South Asia.

The Chief Minister of  Kashmir,  Mr. Omar Abdullah talking to newsmen in Jammu said that Panchayat election was not a referendum on Kashmir dispute. He maintained that talks were the only means to find a way out of the imbroglio on Kashmir.

Meanwhile, the Amnesty International in a statement issued in London demanded of the Indian authorities to release teenage Kashmiri boy, Murtaza Manzoor detained under draconian law, Public Safety Act.

BJP leaders visit Maulana Showkat's residence

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Srinagar, April 14: A team of senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders currently visiting Jammu and Kashmir paid obeisance at of Hazratbal Shrine here Thursday morning. The leaders also visited the family of Maulana Showkat Ahmad Shah, who was assasinated last week.

Mr. Rajnath Singh, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Shahnawaz Hussain, accompanied by some other parliament members of the BJP, visited the Hazratbal shrine, which houses the Holy Relic of Prophet Muhammad(SAW) .

Later, the team went to the house of the Maulana Showkat Ahmad Shah, at Lal Bazar on city outskirts. The BJP leaders expressed condolences to the bereaved family and met the son and the brother of the slain Ahlehadees president.

The BJP leaders also paid respects at the Chati Padshahi Gurdwara (Sikh temple) in the old city's Rainawari area.

Ram Navmi celebrations at Barbarshah Mandir He Ram ke wajood pe Hindostan ko naaz/Ahl-e-nazar samajhtey hein usko Imam-e-Hind! : He Ram ke wajood pe Hindostan ko naaz/Ahl-e-nazar samajhtey hein usko Imam-e-Hind! Dr. Alama Iqbal, the poet of the East, has written a wonderful and ...

Srinagar, Apr 13: Ram Navmi was Tuesday celebrated with fervor and enthusiasm at Shri Ram Ji Mandir at Barbar Shah in the City while later the devotees carried out a procession which culminated at Lal Chowk.

The Hindu Welfare Society of Kashmir organized the nine daylong celebrations at the Mandir.
 “The welfare society also organized a special Puja Havan (Maha Yagiya) as mark of the birthday of Lord Shri Ram Ji. This nocturnal Puja started at 8:00 PM and continued till afternoon at 2:00 PM,” said Publicity Secretary and Spokesman of  Hindu Welfare Society Kashmir, Chuni Lal adding that the Puja was started by Kashinath of Achan Pulwama, Pandit AK Bhat and others.

Hundreds and thousands of devotees thronged the Mandir, where they recited Hindu Bhajans and prayed for peace and prosperity.
 

Later, the devotees carried out a procession. Dancing and chanting sermons, the devotees marched towards Lal Chowk, where the procession culminated.

Giving details about the celebrations Chuni Lal said: “Ram Navami is a celebration of nine days, which starts from 1st Navratra.”
 He said during the festival the devotees don’t eat any non vegetarian stuff.
 “During these days we never every eat non – vegetarian stuff like eggs, meat, fish etc,” he added.

Indian CRPF troopers in IHK get new Israeli assault rifles

Srinagar, April 12 : In Jammu and Kashmir, the personnel of Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) are finally laced with Israeli assault rifles 'X95' and 'Tavor' to suppress Kashmiris’ just liberation struggle, reports Kashmir Media Service.

A local daily in a report said that one of these sophisticated rifles 'X95' had already been received by the CRPF while 'Tavor' was yet to be procured.

A top CRPF officer, wishing anonymity, told media men that both the weapons were costly and were first used in some areas in India by the CRPF personnel. "Since both the rifles are difficult to operate so the CRPF men will be made to undergo a special training to use them," the report said.

Confirming that the CRPF men in the valley will be laced with the two sophisticated weapons, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of CRPF, Prabhakar Tripathi said that they had already procured 'X95' and the 'Tavor' would be procured soon.

BJP will talk to separatists: Rajnath Singh

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Jammu, April 12: Senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh Monday said his party had no reservations about talking to different shades of opinion in Jammu and Kashmir including Kashmiri separatists, reports Rissing Kashmir.

"We welcome all shades of opinion in Kashmir including the separatists for talks. But it will be within the ambit of the constitution," said Rajnath, who is in Jammu along with the BJP's J&K parliamentarian study group.

He said the group was not going to knock at the separatists' doors but would hear them if they came forward to talk.

The former BJP president, who is also the group's chairman, said the BJP did not have a vision document on Jammu Kashmir so far and the party leadership felt the need for having one to project it in the country and the Parliament. “We believe that genuine aspirations of the people of State should be taken into consideration if peace and prosperity has to prevail and we are here for that,” he said.

Rajnath said the group would hold discussions and take feedback from civil society members, bureaucrats, political and social organisations. "We will study the genesis of the people's problem and highlight them in the Parliament. The BJP has not formally invited any certain section of the society but those who want to meet us are welcome,” he said.

He said the group would conclude its Jammu visit on Wednesday and then leave for a two-day Srinagar tour. "The team will interact with people in the Ladakh region during its next visit,” he added.

Saffron -Crocus sativuscultivation

Announcement

Saffron Corms and genotypes : Study has ben shown that superior genotypes since last 13 years confirmed  superiority of 5 genotypes viz SMD-45, SMD-3, SMD-52, SMD-81. Elite genotypes recorded saffron yield ranging from 4.0-7.7 kg/ha with corresponding crocin content ranging from 13-89-17.10 percent.

We have been selling corms since last 21 years now and once again will be making corms available from June to September every year.  Those corms will flower in the period from the end of October.

Once again this year we are offering corms for sale in packages designed for home gardeners as well as for those contemplating purchasing corms in bulk.

• 20 Corms (larger than 5 Gram)
• Cashmeriana origon
• Planting Guide
• Superiority of 5 genotypes viz SMD-45, SMD-3, SMD-52, SMD-81.SMD-68
• Available in 5 Calibars  2,5,6,8,10

• Please indicate the numbers of corms and we supply according to the date the order has been received
• A deposit of 100% in advance is required with the order.
• Booking order : 12 months

For further information If you are interested in purchasing Corms from the Chenab Industries Kashmir-CIK nursery, or to request more information email us. cikashmir@gmail.com
Write to: Chenab Industries Kashmir-CIK, POB: 667 GPO Srinagar SGR JK 190001
Contact us at : Chenab industries Kashmir-CIK, Ist street, Shaheed-e-Azemat Road, Nambalbal, Pampore PPR JK 192121
Ph: 01933-223705
Mob: 09858986794
home: http://chenabindustries.blogspot.com

Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) Kashmir

Srinagar, April 28 : In disputed state of  Kashmir, the activists of Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) held a monthly sit-in at Municipal Park in Srinagar demanding the whereabouts of their dear ones disappeared in custody.

A spokesman of the APDP talking to media men demanded an international, independent investigation into all fake encounters and human rights violations by Indian troops in the Jammu and Kashmir.

He pointed out that history of Indian army in Jammu and Kashmir stood testimony to the fact that it had never cooperated with the police, judiciary or civil administration in investigations of human rights violations perpetrated by the troops.

The APDP was founded in 1994, when large number of parents used to visit the High court to file or to pursue the Habeas Corpus petitions. The relatives used to take the individual efforts in a disorganised manner.

Finally the Patron, a practicing lawyer and a Human Rights activist with the help of chairperson, herself the victim of Enforced disappearances put them on collective forum for collective efforts. The APDP technically is not a human right group but the association of the sufferers wronged by the functioning of the state, who are campaigning for knowing the whereabouts of their missing relatives. Any person victim of the disappearances could be the member of the association.

The association has no political affiliations or political positions. It is an independent group seeking justice from the state

“In last 20 years army has forced the police to file its version in the FIRs and Macchil fake encounter is one of the recent expose of human rights abuses by the army as well as of how the police are forced to register false FIRs. Despite the media expose army continues to refuse cooperating with the police and civil administration in the investigations,” he deplored.-KMS