The Tribune...Jammu and Kashmir

J A M M U C& CK A S H M I R

Friday, July 17, 1998

weather n spotlight
today's calendar

2 Pak mercenaries killed

SRINAGAR, July 16 — Four persons, including three militants, were killed in separate incidents while one terrorist was arrested and another laid down his arms in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening...

Kar seeks greater
autonomy for J&K

JAMMU, July 16 — Seniormost Congress leader and a former PCC chief, Mr Ghulam Rasool Kar, has caused a flutter in the party circles by supporting the demand, voiced by the National Conference, for grant of greater autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir and for posting of additional UN military observers on the Indo-Pak border to defuse tension...

Peace march in Srinagar

SRINAGAR, July 16 — Wearing green T-shirts, 55 members of "Sarhad", an organisation, here today took out a ''peace march" through the civil lines of the city distributing handbills to the people and security forces...

Another Amarnath
pilgrim dies
SRINAGAR, July 16 — Mrs P.L. Thayamal, a pilgrim to the Amarnath shrine died at Panchatarni on the Chandanwari -Amarnath cave route today...

2 Pak mercenaries killed
SRINAGAR, July 16 (PTI) — Four persons, including three militants, were killed in separate incidents while one terrorist was arrested and another laid down his arms in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening.
An official spokesman said the three militants, two of them Pakistani nationals, were killed in a fierce encounter with the security forces at Shopian in Pulwama district yesterday.
The Pak mercenaries belonging to the Lashkar-e-Toiba outfit were identified as Abdul Malik, alias "Abu Wakas" of Sind and Mohammad Tariq, alias "Abu Shaheed" of Derawala, he added.
Three AK assault rifles, a pistol, nine hand grenades and 12 detonators were seized.
He said Fatima Begum was killed and Hussain Mohammad sustained injuries in an exchange of fire between the militants and the security forces at Doogan Dhok in the Budhal area of Rajouri district last night.
Some houses were gutted at Surankote in Poonch district when they caught fire in a shoot out after militants attacked a police picket, the spokesman said adding the area had been cordoned off to flush out the militants.
Militants also exchanged fire with police guards at Drug post in the Budhal area of Rajouri but no one was hurt on either side, the spokesman said.
The spokesman said militants exploded a grenade near a police post at Sheerbagh in Anantnag district last evening but no one was hurt.
The special operations group of the local police arrested a militant of banned Harkat-ul-Ansar, Ghulam Mohammad Bhat, alias "Saleem" from the Lal Bazar area of Srinagar last evening, he said adding a revolver with six cartridges were seized.
A militant surrendered before the security forces at Helmathpora in Kupwara district and handed over a rifle and some ammunition, he added.
He said the security forces recovered 70 detonators, two disposable rocket launchers and some explosives and ammunition during combing operations at Kalaban forest in Kupwara yesterday.
Three houses belonging to migrant Panidts were gutted in two separate fire incidents at Habakadal in Srinagar and Ruhama-Sopore in Baramula district last night, he said.

Peace march in Srinagar
Tribune News Service
SRINAGAR, July 16 — Wearing green T-shirts, 55 members of "Sarhad", an organisation, here today took out a ''peace march" through the civil lines of the city distributing handbills to the people and security forces.
"Hamein is beat kaa dukh hai ki hum Kashmir mein bohat der sey Aaye", said Sanjay Ahler, leader of "Sarhad", an NGO from Pune in Maharashtra. He said that the marchers wanted to convey to the people that they also shared their grief.
The marchers, including two women, started their "peace march" from Pratap Park around noon today. After marching through Lal Chowk, Amirakadal, Hari Singh high street, Jehangir Chowk, Budshah Bridge, Moulana Azad Road, and M.A Bridge reached the shrine at Sonwar. The marchers offered prayers for peace here and later returned to Pratap Park.
During their two-hour march led by a loudspeaker-fitted vehicle, the marchers also issued '' peace appeals'' among the public in general and the security forces. "Let us convey our message of peace only", went the message through the streets of Srinagar as the marchers moved on.
While Mr Ahler said "we want to 'distribute' peace and in return we want love", Ms Bharti Manani said that the group wanted to "convey the message of peace to the people of Kashmir".
The Pune-based organisation has been working for peace over the past 15 years in Punjab to bridge the gap between the divergent factions of society. The 55-member team left Pune on July 1 for Amritsar in Punjab from where it left for Kashmir on July 5. The tour is part of the three-week peace march which concludes on July 21.
During its stay in Srinagar, the Sarhad group has already offered prayers at the Hazratbal shrine and also took out a peace march in Baramulla town yesterday. In Jammu, the activists visited Chrar-e-Sharief in Rajouri and paid obeisance at the shrine of Baba Fareeduddin Shah in Jammu.
The activists also met senior separatist leaders Shabir Ahmad Shah and Mohammad Yasin Malik and conveyed to them the objective of the peace march.

Kar seeks greater autonomy for J&K
From M.L. Kak
Tribune News Service
JAMMU, July 16 — Seniormost Congress leader and a former PCC chief, Mr Ghulam Rasool Kar, has caused a flutter in the party circles by supporting the demand, voiced by the National Conference, for grant of greater autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir and for posting of additional UN military observers on the Indo-Pak border to defuse tension.
Mr Ghulam Rasool Kar, who as sole trustee of D.P. Dhar Memorial Hospital in Sapore succeeded in motivating Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah to take over the hospital by the government, told mediapersons in Srinagar on Wednesday that he was for greater autonomy to the state.
When he was the PCC chief till two years ago he used to oppose the same demand and now by speaking in support of the National Conference stand Mr Kar is said to have gone closer to the ruling party in Jammu and Kashmir. Bigger surprise for Congress circles in the state was his demand for posting more UN military observers on the Indo-Pak border to defuse the current tension. He said UN military observers alone could stop firing and shelling on the border. He went to the extent of favouring conversion of the Line of Actual Control into an international border only after Sialkot and Hajipeer areas, now under control of Pakistan, were handed over to India and in return Teethwal and Tangdhar were given to Pakistan.
Congress circles in Jammu said that Mr Kar had deliberately ignored the stand taken by India on these two issues. For the past 13 years India does not recognise the UN military observers group in Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian side does not report any incident of Pak border violations to the UN military observers group on the plea that the group had lost its locus standi in the state. On a number of occasions in the past India had suggested to the United Nations to withdraw the UN military observers group (UNMOG) but it was not conceded after Pakistan pressed for the continuance of these observers.

The UNMOG had been posted on either side of the Indo-Pak border in Jammu and Kashmir since 1949 after India took the case of Pak aggression on Kashmir in 1947 to the UN Security Council. When the Indian side in early 80's saw that the UNMOG was playing a partisan role it refused to grant any recognition to its members.
At the press meet Mr Kar reserved his comments on the appointment of Ch Mohd Aslam as PCC president. He said that he had no comment to offer and added that he was not a "bonded labour of the Congress high command which had taken the decision, "right or wrong", to install Mr Aslam as PCC chief.
The Congress circles are intrigued over the stand of Mr Kar and described it nothing but "frustration" on the part of Mr Kar after the Congress high command rejected his candidature for the post of PCC chief. At one stage he was considered favourably for the post despite the fact that two years ago he had been thrown out with the dissolution of the PCC which he headed. But one of his adversaries in the Congress pulled the cat out of the bag by informing the Congress high command that in 1998 Lok Sabha election Mr Kar had approached Dr Farooq Abdullah, saying that he would join the National Conference if he was given the Baramullah seat which he had won in 1996 in the absence of National Conference candidate in the field.
Informed Congress circles said that during his recent meeting with the Chief Minister in Sopore, where Dr Abdullah announced that the government will name one bridge in the apple town after the name of Ghulam Rasool Kar, some understanding between the two has been hammered out. The Chief Minister is said to have encouraged Mr Kar to tow the National Conference line on greater autonomy and on conversion of Line of Actual Control into a permanent border. This is what Mr Kar has done to the surprise of the Congress circles but to the comfort of the National Conference.
Mr Kar had already lost trust of both Mufti Mohd Sayeed and Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad and he thought it advisable to side with the National Conference. Observers here are of the opinion that if there was no reconciliation between the Congress high command and Mr Kar the latter may join the National Conference provided Dr Abdullah does not ditch him at the last moment.

Another Amarnath pilgrim dies
Tribune News Service
SRINAGAR, July 16 — Mrs P.L. Thayamal, a pilgrim to the Amarnath shrine died at Panchatarni on the Chandanwari-Amarnath cave route today.
An official spokesman said here that Thayamal, wife of Laxman Raj of Tamil Nadu, was on the way to the holy shrine of Amarnath. With this the total number of yatris killed during the annual pilgrimage so far has gone up to eight. An official spokesman said these were all natural deaths.
Giving details of the pilgrimage the spokesman said nearly 33,000 pilgrims had arrived so far in connection with the annual pilgrimage. Of them 27,400 yatris had darshan of the ice lingam of Lord Shiva.
Meanwhile, another batch of 3,242 Amarnath pilgrims left Jammu this morning in 175 vehicles for Pahalgam and Baltal while 3720 pilgrims had "darshan" at the cave yesterday.
The Meteorology Department has warned heavy rain in the area.