LADAKH
After a year, the Romeo-Juliet of Ladakh managed to visit their hometown where they threw their reception party. The bride, Stanzin Saldon, a Buddhist, and the groom, Murtaza Agha, a Muslim, who were both living in Jammu where they fell in love and then they got married in 2016 secretly but decided to live separately. As their love story became public, it became “a war” with communal overtones as Muslim and Buddhist felt being pitted against each other. The police and courts also intervened. But, as they say, Mian Beewi Raazi, Kya Karay Ga Qazi. They are married and happy and this love story even reached in the pages of New York Times.
PULWAMA
As the entire attention of the society and the government is focused towards the mysterious braid chopping, the muscle men on Kashmir front have rediscovered an old target: beauty salons. Unidentified gunmen hurled a grenade at a parlour injuring two female employees of a salon in south Kashmir town. Though the parlours have been functioning normally for more than a decade, the pessimists see it as a fresh bid to force their closure.
SRINAGAR
Kashmir lost a reputed medical practitioner Dr Syed Naseer Ahmad Shah, last week. He was 89. A scion of a family with roots in Teetwal, the Shahs’ have a huge contribution to Kashmir’s girl education. Shah was married to Dr Girja Dhar, his classmate, whom he met in London in 1960. Both of them eventually got the opportunity to head the state run Medical College in Srinagar. A contemporary of legendry Dr Ali Jan, Dr Shah headed the GMC for 13 years till 1981. Mehmooda Ahmad Ali Shah and Rehana Jalaluddin were Dr Shah’s sisters. He is survived by wife, also aged, and a daughter Dr Tina Anjila Shah (in picture with her parents). She lives in US with her husband Anil Koul.
KUPWARA
In a bizarre use of the long arm of the law, police landed in Shakoot village in Taratpora with a court warrant for Haji Ghulam Mohiuddin Mir, a Jamat e Islami member, whose family was mourning his death. The warrant was in response for not appearing before the court on the hearing dates. He was not keeping well from a long time. The old man had been booked by police in 2002 and dubbed an Over Ground Worker (OGW).
KOKERNAG
Technically, it was not wrong. In the ideologically split political landscape of Kashmir, Asiya Andrabi is an achiever on one side of the axis. But when the endorsement comes from the government, it is embarrassing. That is what exactly happened to social welfare department when it showcased her as one of the many achievers as part of their Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign along with Mehbooba Mufti, Kalpana Chawla, Sania Mirza, Lata Mangeshkar, Mother Theresa and many others. Asiya is a die-hard Pakistani and currently in jail. Now the officer has been suspended and investigation started. But any court can not deny her being an achiever even though the minister Sajjad Lone sees her as an “aberration” and not a “role model”.
CHINA
A documentary film Global Warning – Kashmir Chapter won the 2nd Best film award (Silver) in Long Unit film Category at Handle Climate Change Film Festival at Shenzhen, China. There were 1254 films from 93 countries and three of them got the honours. The film narrates the story of three progressive farmers: cherry farmer Samad Khan, 76, a Pashtun), almond farmer Mohammad Shafi, 68, and saffron grower Haji Abdul Aziz, 75. The trio was prosperous and happy till weather crisis made them paupers. Jalaluddin Baba has produced and directed the film.
