Pushed BACK
Another Pak returnee militant was pushed back by army while trying to enter into the Indian territory near the Line of Control (LoC) at Digwar in Poonch sector along with his Pakistani wife and three children early this week. The militant was pushed back on the ground that the route he took to return didn’t fall under four routes authorized by the state government in the rehabilitation policy for the returning of natives .
Four points include Chakan-Da-Bagh on Poonch-Rawlakote route in Jammu, Uri-Muzaffarabad route in Kashmir, Wagah border in Amritsar, Punjab, and Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi are four authorized routes identified by the government.
“So far, no militant has returned through four authorized routes’, sources said, adding that nearly 120 militants, some of them with their family members, who returned home, had mostly taken Nepal route. They reached Kathmandu from Pakistan by air and then entered Uttar Pradesh to reach Jammu and Kashmir.
This was for the fourth time on the LoC in Poonch that the militants trying to return home in the border district were not allowed to cross into this side as they were taking routes not authorized under the rehabilitation policy.
Mohammad Javed, 31, son of Mohammad Ashraf, a resident of Hari Marhote in Surankote tehsil of Poonch district, his wife Tabassum alias Sofia, 26, a resident of Sialkot, Pakistan and three children – Zoha Javed, 5, Mohammad Saqeeb, 2, and seven-month-old Wasim appeared at village Digwar Terwain ahead of fencing, about five kilometers from Poonch sector and offered themselves for surrender.
Sources said the Army personnel quizzed the militant and his wife for few minutes before pushing them back to Pakistan administered Kashmir (PaK) citing that they couldn’t return from Digwar, which was not a designated route under the policy of the state government.
Sources said Javed was a top Lashker militant when he crossed over to PaK from LoC in Poonch district in 2001 for undergoing further arms training in Lashkar camps. He stayed in the camps for sometime but was later disenchanted with the militancy and settled at Mang Bajri Muhajir Camp, where a number of former militants were putting up along with their families after marrying the PaK or Pakistani girls. More than 1000 militants had applied for their return through their families here under the rehabilitation policy. Of them, a high level screening committee of the government had approved 680 applications.
Geelani v/s Omar On AMARNATH
Geelani’s post Eid agitation program on the alleged constructing road to Amarnath cave has started creating ripples. CM Omar Abdullah dubbed his statement as misleading and a threat to peace. He offered him two choppers to fly to the mountain belt and detect where the road was being laid.
“No road is being laid as there is no requirement for a road at all,” Omar told reporters while visiting various old city areas. “Nobody has sought land from us and we have not given anything.”Offering his version of events, Omar said there was no demand for a road in any of the related document. “It is a track and we are supposed to improve it wherever it needs repairs,” Omar said.
Based on the recommendations of a high level expert committee, the apex court had directed the J&K government to improve the existing facilities and infrastructure. The state government has already tasked chief secretary, Madhav Lal, to implement the directions.
“They try to create fear in the minds of people by using mikes and guns as peaceful situation does not suit to their style of politics”, Omar said, “It is all false propaganda.”
Earlier, chairman Hurriyat Conference (G), Syed Ali Geelani, termed the government plan to construct road to Amarnath cave as dangerous and a design to change the demography of the state. The aged separatist leader threatened that the agitation to counter the government program would be announced after Eid-ul-Azha.
“They have a design to cut off the entire area from Kashmir and set up Amarnath city there,” Geelani said, “We will talk to other separatist groups on the issue and announce an agitation program after Eid.”
According to official figures, around 6.30 lakh pilgrims performed Amarnath Yatra (pilgrimage) this year. The pilgrimage witnessed 130 deaths of which 88 were due to medical reasons and 42 due to accidents. Geelani questioned the construction of road and said the state government was not allowing locals to carry out renovation work of their houses in Pahalgam and Chandanwari.
“For the past three months, construction material is being dumped in Seeshnag and adjoining areas of the cave. The government is silent on it and instead trying to save its chair,” Geelani said.
An official spokesman said that on October 16, the governor and the chief minister discussed the case before the Supreme Court’s ruling was issued, the matters arising from the experience of yatra in 2012, and establishing a time frame for the implementation of various activities for the satisfactory conduct of yatra in 2013.
Now INTROSPECTION?
Since 1989 when armed insurgency started in Kashmir valley, thousands of young boys decided to fight against the Indian forces and crossed over to the other side of line of control for arms training. They were supported by all but when they were killed; few ever bothered to go and meet their old age parents, grown up sisters, children or their young wives and offer any financial support.
With all such complaints, a group of people from across the valley arrived at Hurriyat headquarters in Rajbagh. The victims of violence, while narrating their ordeals, accused the separatist leaders of ignoring them. The meet between separatists and victims was organized by Kashmir Salvation Movement and Association of Kashmiri Affected Families.
A woman in her mid 50s angrily said that no leader ever visited them. She said no one took care of her family and her poor condition had forced her to admit her lone son to an orphanage. “I have to bear his separation because I cannot afford to feed him. Eid is a few days away. Who will give my children new clothes?” Joining her was Abdul Razaq Khan from Magam, father of Mustafa Khan- a Hizbul-Mujahideen Commander.
He stressed the separatist leaders to visit the families of victims so that the latter could feel ‘that heirs of their martyrs are alive.’ “When my son was killed in encounter, the security forces continued to harass me. I had my two young daughters aged 11 and 15 at home. My relatives advised me to marry them off. I had nothing to offer them at that time. Believe me, my daughter wore a bathroom slipper at the time of her marriage. I have no regrets over the killing of my son, but leaders should also remember us,” he said.
A victim even accused a Hurriyat leader of expelling her from his house where she has gone there to ask for Rs 200 to feed her children. “I was forcibly expelled from the house. A Sikh youth who was walking on the road outside the house gave me money,” she said.
Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (M) and convener of the meet, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, while admitting the mistakes by the leaders said, “I agree with you that Hurriyat has not been able to share your grief as it should have been”. Mirwaiz also said that efforts were on for establishment of Bait-ul-maal all over Kashmir to support the victims.
Zanaskar CURFEWED!
There seems to be no end in sight to the tension in the remote Zanaskar region of Ladakh as Muslims and Buddhists continue to clash over the conversion of six families to Islam.
According to the police, three persons including the local Tehsildar was injured in the clashes. The injured were flown to
Srinagar for treatment. In September, around 26 Buddhists from six families converted to Islam in the local Jamia Masjid. Of them, five are residents of Padam, the centre of the remote town, and the remaining family lives in Zangla.
Tension was triggered when local Muslims moved around the market carrying the new converts over their shoulders.
The Buddhist majority reacted by enforcing a strike and started social boycott of the converts. On the other hand, Zanskar Buddhist Association, the main party of the majority community led a campaign against the converts. They alleged the Muslims of luring the families to Islam, an allegation rejected by the local clergy.
But things turned ugly when the converted family from Zangla went back into the Buddhist fold, making Muslims allege that they did so under pressure from the majority community. This triggered fresh violence in the area in which three persons were injured and police imposed curfew restrictions.
Zanskar is the Buddist majority belt of the Muslim majority Kargil district. According to police sources, sending reinforcement to the place becomes increasingly difficult as Zanskar, which is located 332 kilometres from Kargil, remains cut-off from the region for seven months because of heavy snowfall.
Locals allege the majority community has started harassing minority Muslims in wake of the conversion and a virtual boycott against the community was in place. A small number of young Muslims from Zanskar protested in Srinagar against the harassment from the majority Buddhist community in wake of fresh violence in the area.
