SRINAGAR
With mercury tumbling, the LPG seems to be selling like life saving oxygen. New systems have created a situation that the dealers went on a flash strike and then resumed routine. Chief minister Omar Abdullah has again written to the new petroleum minister, M Veerappa Moily, for adding to the subsidized number of cylinders per consumer, given the topography of the region, a letter he had written to his predecessor, S Jaipal Reddy. The major development on LPG front was that after media reported Omar having multiple connections, he surrendered two of them. His dad, Farooq followed the suit and surrendered two of his three HP connections! Interesting revelation is that south Kashmir is linked to Jammu LPG for distribution and not Srinagar.
LEH
Seven-year-old Stanzin Nawang Jigmed Wangchuk, left Leh to pursue his higher studies. He is the old 20th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche who was recognized by Dalai Lama as the reincarnation of the previous Rinpoche Bakula, the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche who passed away at the age of 86 in November 2003. Then, Jigmed was barely two year old. On Wednesday, Rinpoche was taken in a motorcade from Spituk Monastery to KG Bakula Airport wherefrom he flew to Delhi and to Karnataka for future studies at Drepung Loseling monastery.
POONCH
Irum Fatima, the 22 year old Gujjar damsel from Golat, Mendhar was intercepted by army in Phagwari Gali at the LoC and handed over to her parents. She was crossing over to meet and marry her relative with whom she was in touch through Facebook. They fell for each other when he crossed over on permit last year. Her parents wanted to marry her somewhere else and the ceremony was slated for November 8 that Irum fled. She proved unlucky. But LoC created other news as well. While in Jammu, people caught a Pakistani woman along with her suckling baby. Police arrested an erstwhile militant, Showkat Ali, and his wife, Hameeda, in Rajouri when he came home taking Karachi-Nepal-Bihar-Jammu route after formally applying for return. While the couple is in jail, their two kids have been handed over to their grandparents.
JAMMU
Principal secretary (finance), M Iqbal Khandey, was elevated to the Fixed Scale of IAS and re-designated as Financial Commissioner. He was promoted to the Fixed Scale retrospectively from April 10, 2010 and the period of his suspension between June 29, 2006 and March 18, 2007 was considered as on duty in terms of Rule 5(B) of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969. An IAS officer becomes eligible for promotion to this scale on completion of 30 years of service. The promotion was delayed because of a criminal case in which he was acquitted by the court recently.
MUZAFFARABAD
A group of women from J&K used trans-LoC Jhelum Valley Road to attend a conference in Muzaffarabad. The activity was hosted by NGO Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR) that Sushobha Barve heads. Those who crossed over included Nighat Shafi Pandit, Prof Nusrat Andrabi, Prof T Joldan, Qurrat-ul-Ain, Prof Effat Yasmeen, Prof Ravinderjit Kour, Prof Rekha Chowdhary, Prof Yasmin Ashai, Ellora Puri and Ayesha Saleem. Prof Hameeda Nayeem and Zamrooda Habib were disallowed to crossover. The German-funded, Delhi NGO had earlier hosted a similar delegation from Pak in Srinagar. Greeted warmly, the women are attending a three days seminar.
R S PORA
In a landmark judgement, 1st Additional Sessions Judge, Jammu, Y P Bourney, awarded death sentence to Rakesh Kumar, a resident Banota, for burning his pregnant wife, Neena Devi, on March 14, 2007. While being treated for massive burn injuries, Neena had told the police in the hospital in her statement that her husband gagged her, sprinkled petrol over her and put her afire over an argument. Their conjugal life was disturbed by harassment over dowry. They had a son at the time of her death. The court termed the crime “most brutal, barbaric and ghastly” and awarded death sentence.
