JAMMU, Sept 3: The stage is set for a battle of ideologies and show of strength this Sunday as former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad will hold a rally in his home turf of J&K to gauge the mood of the public, while the Grand Old Party takes to the streets in Delhi against inflation, unemployment and LPG price hike.
In the former chief minister’s hometown Bhaderwah in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district, locals are happy to welcome him and are upbeat about his future plans since he severed ties with the Congress in a public spat where he blamed Rahul Gandhi for the degeneration of the Grand Old Party.
Most supporters of Azad in Bhaderwah say they will always side with him, irrespective of which party he represents. “Azad saab has always worked for the people of Bhaderwah. Even when he was in Delhi, he never forgot the people of this area,” a local businessman said.
The Congress, meanwhile, has tweeted a video of a protest by party workers in Azad’s home block against him, with party general secretary Jairam Ramesh tweeting: “This is ground reality, not reality manufactured by people sitting in New Delhi in Modi Sarkar sanctioned bungalows with huge lawns and planting fake news.”
The J&K Congress also tweeted a video of Congress workers of all blocks of Bhallessa sub-division assembled at the Gandoh office for the monthly meeting conducted on the first day of every month for the last over 50 years.
Azad’s scathing letter on his resignation from the Congress, a party he has been associated with for years, took the top brass by surprise amid discussions about elections to the post of Congress chief. While the Gandhis are not keen to take up the post, the name of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot is doing the rounds of political circles.
On Sunday, the Congress is holding a ‘Mehangai Par Halla Bol’ rally. The party had also organised ‘Mehangai Chaupals’ or interactive meetings at mandis, retail markets and other locations in all the assembly constituencies from August 17 to 23.
The party had printed booklets and distributed them to all the state organisations. They were then translated and printed in the local languages for distribution among the public. (Agencies)

Srinagar, Sept 3: The body of a labourer from Banihal who had drowned in river Jhelum while extracting sand two days ago, was retrieved on Saturday in Rajbagh area of Srinagar.

Jaffar Wani, 22, drowned into the river Jhelum while extracting sand in Sonwar area of Srinagar, news agency KNO reported.

Soon, a rescue operation was launched by Srinagar River Police and SDRF to retrieve his body, which was finally recovered today morning, an official said.

Police have taken cognizance of the incident and the body has been sent to hospital for medico-legal formalities, he added.

SRINAGAR, Sept 2: Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari on Friday said a party delegation would call on Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha soon to formally demand the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
Addressing a press conference here, Bukhari also demanded the release of the youths who were detained in Kashmir Valley.
Bukhari said when his party was formed, it had three main agendas — protection of job and land rights of Jammu and Kashmir residents and the restoration of statehood.
”We got the order of job reservation even though there is a point of domicile. But when the statehood is restored and a government is in place, we will restore the PRC (permanent resident certificate) for the citizens of J-K,” he said.
There is 95 per cent protection of land as agricultural land cannot be brought by non-residents, he added.
Bukhari said a delegation of his party will call on the lieutenant governor to seek the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
”We held a meeting today where everyone unanimously decided that a delegation of Apni Party will meet the LG and demand the restoration of statehood formally,” he said.
He said during his public meetings in the last three months, people have been advocating the demand for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
”We will also submit memorandums to the LG through Deputy Commissioners in all the 20 districts across J-K. We want to register and achieve the statehood which was taken away from us on August 5, 2019,” he said.
He said the prime minister and the Union home minister had promised in Parliament that Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood would be restored. The former state minister also demanded the release of the youths detained in Kashmir Valley in the past few months.
”Preventive detentions have taken place in the last few months. First they (authorities) said it was to maintain law and order. Then they said it was for the smooth conduct of the Amarnath Yatra. Now that the Yatra is over and it concluded smoothly, we demand that all the youths in jails be released,” he said.
He said there was a “draconian system” of detaining people for some faults of their relatives.
They are not given employment. Some are told the verification of their credentials is awaited. ”Should we then hang our youths in Lal Chowk as there is no future for them,” he said.
Asked about the apprehensions of outsiders being added to the electoral rolls in Jammu and Kashmir, Bukhari said the government had given assurances that there would be no wrongdoing.
”When this exercise will culminate by the end of September, we will pick up the first rolls to check if there are outsiders,” he said.
On a question about former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad announcing floating a new party in Jammu and Kashmir, Bukhari said the former Rajya Sabha MP might have defended Article 370 in Parliament and even tore his shirt, “but let me tell the truth that Azad sahab voted for the abrogation of Article 370”. (Agencies)

Rajouri, September 2: In another jolt to the Congress from Jammu and Kashmir, party leader Rajinder Prasad, who is also the son of late Master Beli Ram Sharma from Nowshera Rajouri, resigned from all posts and the primary membership of the party. Prasad blamed the ‘coterie’ system for being a reason for the ‘demise’ of the party.
“The party is today surrounded by a coterie of yes men and parachuters. As a result, they are ignorant of the general public’s reality and sorrows, which leads to this big old party’s demise,” Prasad wrote in his resignation letter to Sonia Gandhi.
This came after over 36 Congress leaders including leaders of the National Students’ Union of India submitted their resignations in solidarity with veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Thursday. On August 30, another 64 senior Congress leaders resigned from the party, in what to be termed a mass resignation following Azad’s exit.
Talking about Azad and his popularity across the country and in Jammu and Kashmir he wrote, “Most significantly, the party has lost a diamond in the form of former Chief Minster Janab Ghulam Nabi Azad Sahib, who has sizable mass support across the entire nation, whose time is known as the “Golden Era,” (in J-K) and who served as the backbone of Congress party”.
On August 26, Azad resigned from all posts of the party citing the “immaturity” of Rahul Gandhi whom he blamed for “demolishing the consultative mechanism” in the party.
In a hard-hitting 5 page note to interim party president Sonia Gandhi, Azad claimed that a coterie runs the party. At the same time, she was just a nominal head and all the major decisions were taken by “Shri Rahul Gandhi or rather worse his security guards and PAs”.
Earlier speaking to media persons in the national capital, Azad said, “I have been forced to leave my home on my own.”
Taking a dig at the Congress over his resignation, he said, “Modi is an excuse, they have had an issue with me since the G23 letter was written. They never wanted anyone to write to them, question them.” “Several (Congress) meetings happened, but not even a single suggestion was taken,” added Azad.
Meanwhile, several political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, on August 27, met veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is planning to launch a new national party. “MLAs from Jammu and Kashmir are here. A few more-some senior leaders and ex-ministers-will come in the evening. Azad Sa’ab said a national party will be formed, we’ll begin from J&K and the upcoming poll will be fought strongly. Don’t want to reply to comments, we’ll reply with a victory,” said ex-Congress leader Salman Nizami.
The meeting came within 24 hours of Azad’s resignation from all posts in Congress and it holds importance as the polls in the valley are likely to be held later this year.
“Under the leadership of Azad ji we will launch a national party and the work will begin from Jammu and Kashmir. Azad ji will go to J-K and form an alliance with like-minded parties and leaders. All the criticism coming Azad Ji’s way will be answered by winning elections,” ex-
Congress leader Salman Nizami had earlier announced. The decision to launch a new national party came just hours after the veteran Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, in a letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi resigned from all positions of the Congress party including the primary membership.
Several political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir met veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is planning to launch a new national party, a day after tendering resignations from all posts of Congress. (Agencies)

Jammu and Kashmir police Thursday said that a high security alert has been sounded in Rajouri and Poonch in the wake of recent incidents of violence.

Addressing a press conference here, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Poonch-Rajouri range, Haseeb Mughal said that there are two to three splinter groups of militants present in the area and their movement is being followed and tracked.

“They will be killed soon,” he said. About the recent act in Rajouri’s Darhal on 11 August where a “Fidayeen attack” took place on an army camp in Pargal village, the DIG said that forces were already following the movement of the group after some inputs while in gunfight that broke out at Kandhra Budhal on 14 August, militants escaped from the spot amid very bad weather conditions.

He said that keeping in view the entire scenario, security in Rajouri and Poonch areas have been put on a “high alert” while CASOs and searches are going on almost on a daily basis.

“The security of vital installations have been strengthened further,” he said and appealed people to share information of “any suspicious movement or object with forces for timely action”.

NEW DELHI, Sep 2: The Supreme Court on Friday allowed an NGO named “We The Citizens” to approach the Union Government with a plea seeking probe into the targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs in Jammu and Kashmir during 1990.
A bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and CT Ravikumar expressed disinclination to entertain the matter and asked the petitioner to approach the authorities. Accordingly, the petition as disposed granting liberty to the petitioner NGO to file a representation before the Central Government.
The petition also sought a direction to the government to conduct a census of those victims who were forced to flee the state and reside in different parts of the country.
During the hearing, the advocate appearing for the petitioners submitted that it was a “genocide of more than 1 lakh Hindus in Kashmir”.
He relied on the study in the book “Our Moon Has Blood Clots” by Rahul Pandita, which described the first-hand account of incident of murder, arson and migration of Hindus & Sikhs from Kashmir.
He argued that the book contained detailed accounts of the incident and that the author of the book himself was a victim of the said attacks. He also referred to a book written by Jagmohan, the Governor of J&K during 1990, describing the atrocities committed against Pandits.
Further, he argued that the Jammu & Kashmir government never investigated into the alleged conspiracy. The counsel submitted that the Indian Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure was implemented in J&K only in 2019 after the abrogation of its special status under Article 370 and the Ranbir Penal Code was governing till then. Therefore, appropriate action under IPC and CrPC has not been taken with respect to the crimes.
“The Government has not seen our plight…”, he argued.
The Court then asked,
“Approach the government. Why should we hear it?.. Have you made representation to the Government of India?”
Post this, the court granted liberty to the petitioner NGO to move the government.
The petition filed by the NGO submits that attacks on Kashmiri Pandits in 1989-1990 was a “Genocide of the highest order” with the intent to ethnically cleanse the Kashmir valley from Hindus and Sikhs.
“Kashmiri Pandits (Hindus) and Sikhs have always been in the forefront of the struggle against secessionism, communalism and fundamentalism in Kashmir.The final exodus of Kashmiri Hindus and Sikhs began from the Kashmir valley in 1989. This was a Genocide of the highest order with the intent to ethnically cleanse the Kashmir valley from Hindus and Sikhs.”
Further, the petition said that the attacks in 1990 is a glaring example of complete failure of Constitutional Machinery in preventing the genocide and protecting the life, property of the Kashmiri Hindu and Sikh in the Kashmir valley. Owing to this, the Fundamental Rights guaranteed under Article 14, 19 & 21 of the Constitution of India were openly violated,” the petition argued.
Even though, hundreds of FIRs pertaining to the murders of Kashmiri Hindus were filed, they were taken to their logical conclusion even after lapse of more than 30 years. Highlighting this, the plea states,
“Because of shoddy investigations the perpetrators, terrorist, anti national have been allowed to aggravate the law and order in the valley which resulted into exodus of Hindu families from Kashmir. Thus, till date those migrated families are living life of refuges in other parts of India. Thus, their fundamental right is being violated on day to day basis as they are unable to return to their home please in Kashmir due to lack of security and settlement measures.”
On these grounds, the petition was filed.
In March 2022, Kashmiri Pandits organization “Roots in Kashmir” filed a filed a curative petition in the Supreme Court seeking probe into the killings of Kashmiri Pandits during the height of militancy in the valley during the 1990s.
The curative petition was filed against a 2017 verdict of the Supreme Court which had dismissed the organization’s petition for probe citing long delay. (Agencies)