Hurriyat for lifting ban on cable TV
From Ehsan Fazili
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Oct 14 — Ten days after the renewal of the blanket ban on cable operations by militant organisations here, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) has favoured restarting cable operations by non "obscene channels". But, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, the militant outfit that had initially imposed the ban last month, has warned of strict action against those defying the ban saying the ban on cable operations and cinema halls remained in force.

The issue of continued ban on cable operations came up for discussion at the executive meeting of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, its spokesman said here yesterday. "It was felt that the cable network enables people to know what is happening around the globe. It in a way helps the movement, an APHC spokesman said. He urged the operators to avoid transmitting obscene channels.

In a bid to impose a blanket ban on cable operations here, militants made at least three attacks on cable operators and video parlours here late last month. One person was killed and 17 cinegoers injured when militants exploded a bomb inside Regal Cinema on September 24 last.

The explosion took place at the end of the second and last show on the first day of re-opening of Regal Cinema on posh Residency Road after a gap of nearly a decade.

Two other cinema halls, Broadway in Badami Bagh Cantonment area, and Neelam Cinema also in the security zone near the Police Headquarters here, have been working since last year. Broadway cinema reopened on August 8 last year, was reconstructed at the old site with government assistance of about Rs 10 lakh.

After the attacks on cable operators and video parlours at Solina, Court Road and Hari Singh High Street and the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen imposed ban last month the 35 cable networks of Srinagar city of only 52 in the entire valley closed shop. Operation in other major towns of the valley also downed shutter.

The ban has however, also led to a de facto ban of PTV (Pakistan television) channels, which is otherwise is not objected to by the militant organisations. During Operation Vijay, the then Information and Broadcasting Minister had banned distribution in the entire country. But the ban was not "imposed" in Kashmir as cable operators apprehended that if they did militants may direct them to not transmit other channels as well.

For the past three weeks all cable operators here have suspended cable operations. These cable networks had come up only during the past couple of years. With the introduction of cable networks urban residents had bid farewell to dish antenna which had come up in large numbers throughout the valley.

The Harkat-ul-Mujahideen early this month also renewed its ban on the cable operations saying the beaming "obscene channels was against" the teachings of the Quran.

There have been several occasions during the past two years when cable operators have had to suspend operations. The first occasion was in September 1998, when a number of cable operators were attacked, but they resumed work after a "mutual understanding". Harkat-ul-Mujahideen had also imposed a ban on operations in February this year, but these were resumed at the intervention of APHC chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani.

4 militants killed in valley

SRINAGAR, Oct 14 (UNI) — Four militants and two soldiers were among seven persons killed while the Jammu and Kashmir police Special Operations Group (SOG) apprehended five militants in the valley during the past 24 hours.

Official sources said troops killed three militants during a clash at Kadhar Bandipora in Baramula district today. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the slain militants.

Militants shot dead a security force jawan at Zahamboo Uri this morning. Later the security forces arrested five persons from the area.

An official spokesman said an encounter took place between militants and security forces at Hamam Markote in Baramula last night during which a militant and a soldier were killed. One AK-47 rifle, four magazines and one grenade were recovered from the slain militant.

Militants shot dead a school teacher Ghulam Nabi Shah in his house at Mahore late last night.

At least three security force jawans were injured in a hand grenade attack at Kani Mazar in downtown last evening.

He said the SOG of the Jammu and Kashmir police arrested five militants, including two self-styled regimental commander and communication commander, during overnight raids in Srinagar and Pulwama. Some arms and ammunition were also recovered from the arrested militants.

A woman employee of an Urdu daily was injured when a grenade exploded in the compound of a newspaper office at Abiguzar near here this evening.

Official sources said some persons threw a hand grenade at the office of a daily, Uqab, this evening. However, the grenade hit the wall of the building and exploded in the compound, causing injuries to the woman.

She was admitted to hospital in a critical condition.

However, the Editor of the newspaper, Manzoor Anjum and the other staff escaped unhurt.

This is the second attack on any newspaper in less than a month.

On September 26, the Editor of another leading Urdu daily, Srinagar Times had a narrow escape when a grenade exploded near his car at Buchwara.

J&K to streamline power cuts
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Oct 14 — The Jammu and Kashmir Government is taking measures to streamline the supply of electricity in the state in order to minimise the power cuts in winter.

Giving this assurance in the Legislative Assembly today Mr Pyare Lal Handoo, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, said a high-level meeting would be held shortly on the issue. He said attention would be paid to minimising public inconvenience.

The minister was intervening during a discussion on the calling attention motion of Sheikh Abdul Rehman, charging BSP, "the situation had arisen as a result of inadequate power supply despite a hike in power tariff". Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had earlier this week also assured the House that measures would be taken to streamline power supply in both Jammu and Kashmir.

Replying on the calling attention notice, the Minister of State for Power, Syed Abdul Rashid said that despite having a huge hydro-electric potential of over 15000 MW only about 1.2 per cent of the same had been exploited. The total installed capacity of hydel stations in Kashmir and Jammu divisions was 179 MW, the Minister said. Peak demand in the morning hours was 800 MWs and it was 850 MWs in the evenings.

"The electricity produced in our own power stations and free supply from the central generating stations at Salal and Uri is extremely inadequate to meet the demand. Efforts are being made to meet the gap by importing electricity from the northern region, subject to availability of funds", the Minister of State for Power Syed Abdul Rashid stated.

An amount of Rs 550 crores was provided in the budget for power purchase. But the cost of imported energy had increased. "As a result, against the budgetary allocation of Rs 550 crores, approximately Rs 320 crore has been spent during the first six months alone. During winter months generation from the state's own hydel projects would be lower due to a fall in the water level of rivers.

NC-NDA alliance unholy: Mufti
Tribune News Service

JAMMU,Oct 14 — Without feeling "out", even after being down in the recent Lok Sabha elections, the Peoples' Democratic Party, headed by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has announced a major political programme for what it called filling the "vacuum" caused by the "unholy alliance" between the National Conference and the NDA.

The Mufti told mediapersons here today that majority of people in Jammu and Kashmir had been "alienated" by the "poor performance" of the NC Government and the wanted an alternative which they PDP would provide to them. He said he continued to favour a policy of dialogue and not bullet for resolving the 10-year-old turmoil in Kashmir. But unfortunately, he added, the ruling NC had failed to fight insurgency through political process and instead it left it to the security forces to resolve the conflict.

The Mufti said the PDP had come to stay in the state for providing the people a platform where they could voice their grievances. In reply to a question he said the doors of the party would remain open to genuine political leaders and workers. "We will be choosy in admitting disgruntled elements from the Congress and the NC," he said adding that "our stress will be on enrolling youth, especially doctors, engineers and other intellectuals in our party."

He described the recent Lok Sabha election process in Kashmir a "farce" and cited instances to substantiate his charge that the Election Commission, the Centre and agencies, had sided with the NC in "rigging" the elections. He said for full two months the separatists, especially the Hurriyat Conference leaders, were allowed full freedom to campaign against the poll process urging people to boycott polling. After they had succeeded in ensuring support from voters to their call for poll boycott, the state government swung into action and detained several Hurriyat leaders under the Public Safety Act.

He demanded the Centre to send a fact-finding committee to Kashmir and study the extent of manipulation engineered by the NC leaders, legislators and ministers in "rigging" the elections. He said the people in Kashmir had lost faith in the Indian democracy and the Chief Election Commission. He also wanted the fact-finding mission to go into details of an indirect understanding between the ruling NC and the separatists in enlisting voters support for poll boycott call. He alleged that the state government had fully utilised the services of the men of the Special Task Force of the police in casting bogus votes.

He said corruption and maladministration during the NC rule and the proactive policies adopted by the BJP-led government, resulting in excesses by the security forces, had resulted in peoples' alienation in Kashmir. This alienation had to be ended and people needed to have faith in Indian democracy and the Election Commission without that possibilities of peace in Kashmir were remote.

The Mufti said he would give a proper shape to his PDP which was just two-and-a-half-month-old organisation by setting up provincial and district-level units so that it was in a position to force the government to improve its performance and stop security forces from committing excesses on people.

J&K Sikh bodies slam Vajpayee
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Oct 14 — The Jammu and Kashmir Gurdwara Parbandhak Board, headed by Mr Sudershan Singh Wazir, has berated the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, for not having inducted a single Sikh in the Union Cabinet.

In a statement issued here today, Mr Wazir said they had not disputed the right of the Prime Minister to constitute his council of ministers but the way an important minority community has been ignored was a matter of great concern for Sikhs in the country.

Mr Rangil Singh, another member of the board, demanded that a prominent Sikh leader from outside the House should be inducted as had been practised in the past.

Mr Wazir said it was strange that a less known politician Mr Jeol Oram from Orissa had been given the Cabinet rank but the NC MP, Mr Omar Abdullah, who had entered the Lok Sabha second time, had been given the rank of the Minister of State.

Mr Gurdev Singh Ishar, President, Shiromani Akali Dal, Jammu and Kashmir, and Mr Gurdev Singh, President, state unit of the Akali Dal, also criticised the anti-minority policy of the NDA government led by Mr Vajpayee.

Mr Taranjit Singh Tony also held the BJP responsible for the plight of the Sikhs in the country. He appealed the Punjabis to give a "befitting" reply to the "unholy alliance" between the BJP and the Akali Dal which had lowered the prestige of Akal Takht Sahib.

40,000 pilgrims visit Vaishno Devi

JAMMU, Oct 14 (PTI) — More than 40,000 devotees from various parts of the country have already visited the holy shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi during the first two days of Navratras this year.

Millions of devotees, including foreigners, have been thronging the base camp at Katra for their onward journey to the sanctum sanctorum situated in Trikuta hills of northern Shivaliks, officials said.

Keeping in view the unprecedented influx of pilgrims and tourists this year, the government has made adequate arrangements for their comfort, they said.