7 militants killed in valley
SRINAGAR, Sept 25 — Security forces killed seven militants including four foreigners while militants injured two women and also abducted one person in the Kashmir valley during the past 24 hours.

Inquiry sought into ‘postal ballot scam’
SRINAGAR, Sept 25 — Jammu and Kashmir Congress Vice-President Peerzada Mohammad Syed today demanded intervention of the Election Commission into a ‘‘postal ballot scam’’ in the state.

Steps to prevent border crossing
JAMMU, Sept 25 — The army has taken steps to prevent activists of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front from crossing the Line of Control in the state on October 4, top defence sources said here.

Cinema closed after reopening
SRINAGAR, Sept 25 — Only a day after it was reopened for the public after 10 years, the Regal cinema here today stopped screening movies for the "time being", apparently in view of a grenade attack by militants on the opening day killing one person and injuring 19.

7 militants killed in valley

SRINAGAR, Sept 25 (UNI) — Security forces killed seven militants including four foreigners while militants injured two women and also abducted one person in the Kashmir valley during the past 24 hours.

A Border Security Force (BSF) spokesman said some militants were hiding at Vilgam village in the frontier district of Kupwara.

He said on receiving information BSF personnel immediately cordoned off the area and launched house-to-house searches to nab them. However, when the troops were about to enter a house, they were fired upon by the militants with automatic weapons. The forces immediately retaliated and in the six-hour-long gun battle three foreign militants were killed.

Five AK rifles, 29 anti-personnel mines, six remote controlled devices and some incriminating documents were recovered from the slain militants.

The spokesman said security forces killed a foreign militant at Bari Bahak in the same district. During a search operation yesterday one AK rifle, one pistol and 11 grenades were recovered.

Forces also gunned down two militants at Machil Nar and Chiran Nuji in Kupwara district during two different operations yesterday.

Four grenades, one AK rifle, 20 detonators, eight rockets and four kg of explosives were recovered from them.

One militant was killed in an encounter at Pinjai Marhot in Surankote while a jawan was injured in militant firing at Mandi yesterday.

He said militants entered the house of Lal Din Khan at Sumlar Bandipora village yesterday and fired upon the inmates indiscriminately resulting in injuries to two women who were hospitalised.

He said militants abducted Riyaz Ahmad Ganai from his Tgahab Pulwama house last night, while forces captured one militant in Baramula last evening.

Inquiry sought into ‘postal ballot scam’

SRINAGAR, Sept 25 ( PTI) — Jammu and Kashmir Congress Vice-President Peerzada Mohammad Syed today demanded intervention of the Election Commission (EC) into a ‘‘postal ballot scam’’ in the state.

‘‘We have informed the Chief Election Commissioner to depute representatives to different migrant camps in Jammu to find out how the ruling party is influencing Assistant Returning Officers and other officials to prepare fake ballot papers in the Jammu division’’, Mr Syed, who is also the party nominee from the Anantnag Lok Sabha seat, said while addressing election rallies at Barsoo and Awantipora, about 40 km from here in Pulwama district of South Kashmir.

He alleged that ruling National Conference (NC) candidate and state Revenue Minister Ali Mohammad Naik had influenced many officials connected with elections to prepare fake ballot papers and fake forms. Mr Naik, he said, also directed these officials not to accept any form or ballot paper of any migrant.

‘‘These fake forms and ballot papers have been given to ruling party favourites and supporters so that these are polled on October 4 in the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency in favour of the NC candidate,’’ Mr Syed said.

Kashmiri migrants had also boycotted the poll, he said, adding that they had neither cast their votes in Srinagar nor in Baramula Lok Sabha seats which went to the polls on Sept 5 and 18.

JAMMU: An organisation of Kashmiri Pandit migrants today alleged the postal balloting facility provided to them by the EC had been "fraudulently manipulated" in the current Lok Sabha polls and demanded an inquiry into the process of voting by the displaced people.

"Kashmiri pandits have taken a serious note of the evidence which has been brought to the fore with regard to the fraudulent polling through postal ballots in the parliamentary elections in Jammu and Kashmir," the Chairman of Panun Kashmir’s Political Affairs Committee, Mr Ajay Chrangoo, told newspersons here.

He alleged that the procedure of postal balloting, devised by the EC to pave the way for the participation of "exiled" Kashmiri pandits in polling, "has been allowed to be used with impunity in such a way that the entire process has become a ploy to disinherit the Hindus of Kashmir of their right of franchise."

"That the EC has once again tried to play down this entire event of shady and fraudulent use of postal ballots to manipulate the poll verdict is worth denunciation," he said.

He demanded that the EC should set up an inquiry committee to look into the matter.

PoK Shias as cannon fodder?

SRINAGAR, Sept 25 (ADNI) — The Taliban are creating a launch pad in the Chitral district of the northern areas of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir for attacks into India, it is reliably learnt.

Gunmen, clad in Afghan attire and brandishing sophisticated weaponry, are visiting government offices to identify Muslims and non-Muslims are issuing orders to the local population. Government offices and institutions are shut down at will.

Immediately after the Kargil misadventure by the Pakistan army and the withdrawal of its troops and remnants of Mujahideen across the Line of Control, resentment erupted among the local population of neighbouring Skardu, which was the main base for the training and forming up of the Northern Light Infantry, because their menfolk had been used as cannon fodder and their bodies had been left to rot in the mountains from Mushkoh to Turtok adjoining the Siachen glacier.

Riots took place in August and the local population demanded that the Mujahideen be removed from Skardu.

The Commissioner and Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Chitral, have rushed to the town to defuse the situation and an additional 10 platoons of paramilitary forces have been rushed in to localise the agitation.

Meanwhile, in Jammu and Kashmir, the security forces have recovered an ISI leaflet titled: "Be Prepared for Jehad" written in Urdu from the body of a slain militant urging womenfolk to encourage male members of their families to join the jehad.

The two developments, analysts point out, are self-contradictory. Whereas in both Afghanistan and Pakistan womenfolk have no human rights, the women of the Kashmir valley are being asked to sacrifice their menfolk on the altar of Pakistani geopolitics.

Similarly, in the northern regions where the population is predominantly Shia, the Taliban and Pakistan are trying to force the menfolk to become cannon fodder for the Indian Army, which after the Kargil experience, is extra-sensitive to intrusions across the Line of Control.

Steps to prevent border crossing

JAMMU, Sept 25 (PTI) — The army has taken steps to prevent activists of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) from crossing the Line of Control (LoC) in the state on October 4, top defence sources said here.

"Though we have full confidence that Pakistani authorities will not allow JKLF activists to go ahead with its proposed plan of crossing the LoC, yet the troops have been asked to take certain steps to foil such attempts", the sources said.

Asked about the measures being taken, they said it depended on the composition of marchers, including women and children, and the areas where such crossings may take place.

Some signboards in Urdu and English languages will be put up with warnings "not to cross the border", they said, adding that if marchers do not heed this warning, our soldiers may fire warning shots in the air to prevent them.

"Our intention is not to harm them and they may be apprehended with the help of the police to control their onward march and in case they still persist in crossing, it would be considered an act of aggression and dealt appropriately", they said.

The JKLF (Ammanullah Khan group), which has declared on September 13 that it would violate the LoC in Poonch sector in Jammu division on October four with the crossing of thousands of volunteers from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), has rejected Pakistan's appeal to call off its planned crossing.

A Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman in Islamabad on Thursday had appealed to the JKLF to cancel its proposed crossing of the LoC, saying it could lead to loss of lives as Indian forces might open fire on the marchers.

The JKLF had made similar attempts to cross into the state in 1992 and 1996, but on these occasions attempts of its marchers were foiled by Pakistani troops and rangers leading to deaths of its several activists.

Cinema closed after reopening

SRINAGAR, Sept 25 (PTI) — Only a day after it was reopened for the public after 10 years, the Regal cinema here today stopped screening movies for the "time being", apparently in view of a grenade attack by militants on the opening day killing one person and injuring 19.

A spokesman of the management said the cinema had been closed for the "time being" but he did not elaborate.

Militants hurled two grenades inside the compound of the movie hall around 7p.m. yesterday when the cinegoers were coming out after watching a film.

One person was killed and 19, including three policemen, were injured in the attack. Eight of the wounded are said to be in A "serious" condition.

Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in and around the cinema.

Senior police officers, who visited the site yesterday, said a security bunker would be set up near the hall to prevent recurrence of militant attacks.