Jammu And Kashmir - 2

[Guest]

The call to j-had, to convert the dar-ul-harb into dar-ul-islam, though a matter of pride to the j-hadi male, comes at a price.
While islamics from HokeyPokeystan, Bangladesh and our own Indian villages make off with kidnapped kafir women (the low level ethnic cleansing mentioned by GSub elsewhere on IF), faithful muslimas are left without men. While LeT j-hadis are busy terrorising and suiciding-bombing elsewhere, Kashmiri women are able to study and enjoy freedom. Some positive accidental side-effects for the Kashmiri islamic womenfolk (though at the expense of the Hindus terrorised by their male counterparts).

http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=81602
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Dearth of boys for Kashmiri girls</b>

Press Trust of India
Posted online: Sunday, February 18, 2007 at 1230 hours IST
Updated: Sunday, February 18, 2007 at 1236 hours IST

Baramulla, February 18: The wait for marriageable women to find suitable grooms in the Kashmir Valley is getting longer, with the 17-year-old insurgency in the region creating a dearth of bachelors.

Until some years ago, most parents ensured their daughters were married off by 25. Now, this has stretched to as late as 35 years and the women -- who are also usually the breadwinners of their families -- are becoming an increasingly visible group.

Aneesa Shafi, head of the department of sociology at the University of Kashmir, says, "The valley has lost thousands of its young men -- all of marriageable age – in the last 17 years. This has created a dearth of suitable grooms. The institutions of family and marriage are the worst hit.

"With many youth getting involved in militancy and their future becoming uncertain, it is difficult for parents to marry their daughters to them," she points out.

What was earlier a social stigma -- having an unmarried girl at home -- seems to have become a norm in the valley.

With traditional society seeing rapid changes, not just in its politics, but also its social and cultural fabric, these women have learnt to accept their new roles.

Ghazala Gul, a postgraduate student at University of Kashmir, says, "For girls in the valley, 30 to 35 is the normal age of marriage. I will marry only after my future is secure."<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->Good for her (am assuming the UoK is not a madarsa).

Wait. Just remembered. The future looks bleak for these women. Shariat laws have been introduced in this region: they can kiss the sweet though short-lived freedom of mind and body goodbye.

[Guest]

Traitor Yasin Malik was doing his usual stuff in Delhi, supported by his usual commie, p-secular, islamist supporters - to organize protests against "excesses against human rights" by armed forces in Kashmir. However, Kashmiri Pandit organizations in Delhi organized couter-protest against him and demanded that he be tried on charges for treason against nation. 'Roots In Kashmir' led this counter-protest.

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->नई दिल्ली। जम्मू-कश्मीर लिबरेशन फ्रंट के प्रमुख यासीन मलिक मानवाधिकारों के उल्लंघन के आरोपों को लेकर और वहां के लापता लोगों के परिजनों के साथ जहां भूख हड़ताल पर बैठे, वहीं कश्मीरी पंडितों ने मलिक की गिरफ्तारी और उनके खिलाफ राष्ट्रद्रोह का मुकदमा फिर से शुरू करने की मांग को लेकर प्रदर्शन किया।
   कश्मीरी पंडित युवकों ने रुट्स इन कश्मीर के तत्वावधान में प्रदर्शन किया जिसका मुख्य उद्देश्य राज्य में आतंकियों द्वारा किए जा रहे मानवाधिकार उल्लंघन को सामने लाना था। रुट्स इन कश्मीर के समन्वयक पवन दुरानी ने कहा कि जिस व्यक्ति ने जम्मू-कश्मीर में कश्मीरी पंडितों की हत्या करना स्वीकार किया हो वहीं अब सहानुभूति बटोरने के लिए फर्जी अभियान चला रहा है। वह एक हत्यारा है और उस पर हत्या का मुकदमा चलना चाहिए। हमें उन लोगों से कोई दुश्मनी नहीं जिनके पारिवारिक सदस्य गुम हो गए हैं। हमें उन लोगों के साथ पूरी सहानुभूति है। http://www.jagran.com/news/national.aspx?id=3139493<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

One Shiv Sena activist caught hold of him and applied black colour on his face.

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--> नई दिल्ली। शिवसेना के कार्यकर्ताओं ने हुर्रियत कांफ्रेंस के नेता यासीन मलिक के चेहरे पर उस वक्त कालिख पोत दी जब वह एक धरने का नेतृत्व कर कार में बैठ रहे थे।
   मलिक जम्मू-कश्मीर में लापता हुए लोगों के परिजनों के एक समूह का नेतृत्व करते हुये जंतर-मंतर पर पहुंचे थे। वह राज्य में मानवाधिकारों केउल्लंघन के विरोध में एक दिवसीय धरने पर बैठे थे। लापता लोगों के परिवार के 16 सदस्य भी इस धरने में शामिल थे।
   शिवसेना के करीब 15 कार्यकर्ता जंतर मंतर पर पहुंचे और उनमें से एक ने मलिक के चेहरे पर उस वक्त कालिख पोती दी जब वह धरनास्थल से जाने के लिए कार में बैठ रहे थे। मलिक के साथ उस वक्त कार में दिल्ली विश्वविद्यालय के प्रो. एस ए आर गिलानी भी बैठे थे।
http://www.jagran.com/news/details.aspx?id=3136972
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This news is reported by a Kashmiri paper like this:

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Shiv Sena men attack Malik     

GK NEWS SERVICE
New Delhi: Activists of extremist Shiv Sena on Thursday evening attacked JKLF Chairman Yasin Malik with chemicals. Malik escaped unhurt. Malik, after observing hunger strike at Jantar Mantar alongwith kin of disappeared persons, was intercepted by slogan-shouting Sena men near India Gate and attacked with chemicals.

According to human rights activist Sonia Jabbar, who was also attacked, Shiv Sainiks were following JKLF chairman and other activists till they intercepted them near India Gate and threw a bagful of chemicals. “The fundamentalist forces are intolerant to plight of victims and this was evident from today’s incident,” Jabbar told Greater Kashmir. 
http://www.greaterkashmir.com/Home/Newsdet...sueid=156&Arch=
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colour is chemical after all.

[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Operation Humsafar airlifts 1,900 passengers  </b>
Agencies | Jammu
Army and Indian Air Force (IAF) continued its Operation Humsafar for the second day today by airlifting 1,900 passengers as the 300-km-long Jammu-Srinagar national highway remained closed for the 10th consecutive day.

"We have continued Operation Humsafar by pressing into services a fleet of five AN-32 and two IL-76, thereby airlifting a total of 4,000 stranded passengers, including 1,900 today, in 26 sorties to Kashmir valley and back," a defence official said.

Of the 1,900 airlifted passengers, 1,477 were taken from here and over 400 from Udhampur, the official said, adding 780 passengers were flown from here to Srinagar and 697 passengers were airlifted from Srinagar to Jammu.

With the number of stranded passengers still high, over 2,700 people have been so far registered for airlift to Srinagar in IL-76 and AN-32 during the day from Jammu and Udhampur technical airfields.

The operation will continue from Udhampur and Jammu Air Force stations in assistance with civil officials, defence officials informed.

IAF aircraft were flown from Chandigarh to Jammu and Udhampur Air Force stations for Operation Humsafar.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd--> <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->

[Guest]

Thank goodness this Kashmiri terrorist wasn't allowed to survive so that he can be rescued from justice thereafter by the psecular-'Terrorists deserve to live'-brigade (a la Afzal).

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/DEL142580.htm
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Top militant shot dead in Indian Kashmir</b>
02 Mar 2007 06:15:01 GMT
Source: Reuters

JAMMU, India, March 2 (Reuters) - A top Kashmiri militant accused of killing 16 Hindus in the revolt-torn Himalayan region was shot dead in a gun battle with Indian troops on Friday, a defence spokesman said.

<b>Yaseen was a policeman before he joined the Hizbul Mujahideen group and went on to head one of its units, he said. He was accused of killing 10 Hindus in 2004 and six last year.</b>

"He was a police deserter, a most wanted militant and involved in two massacres of minority community members in Rajouri district," Lieutenant-Colonel S.D. Goswami said.

Rajouri is 170 km (105 miles) northwest of Jammu, the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India's only Muslim-majority state.

Authorities say violence has steadily decreased in Kashmir since India and Pakistan, both of whom claim the region in full but rule it in parts, began peace talks in 2004.

The separatist revolt against Indian rule has killed more than 40,000 people since it began in 1989, officials say. Human rights groups put the toll at about 60,000 dead or missing.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->What, no mention of the hundreds of thousands (quarter million) displaced Kashmiri Hindus in the quick end-summary?
Oh, that's right. This is *Reuters*. What was I expecting? It's a miracle they didn't turn the victims into the terrorists as is their wont wherever islamis are concerned.

[Guest]

<b>EU report not in favour of plebiscite in J&K</b>

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->LONDON: A report by the European Union on Jammu and Kashmir has disfavoured any plebiscite in the state, saying it would be "meaningless" unless Pakistan withdraws all its troops from the parts under it, corrects the demographic changes and ensures return of territory under China.

....

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[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Kashmir in flux </b>
The Pioneer Edit Desk
PDP-Hurriyat deal could help
In 2002, after Jammu & Kashmir had voted in what was its most free election ever, a grand strategy for a democratic solution to Kashmiri alienation was beginning to reveal itself. The election brought to power the People's Democratic Party of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, a man who had the sympathies of the separatists and was probably the most popular mainstream politician in the Valley. Certainly, five years ago the PDP was regarded more representative of Kashmiri aspirations than, say, the National Conference. While the boycott of the 2002 poll by the All-Party Hurriyat Conference was a disappointment to the Centre's plans, the election of the PDP and the displacement of the National Conference was a boost. It established the Government of India's bona fide with ordinary Kashmiris. It was also a key propaganda and public relations achievement for India. Over the past five years, Delhi's "big picture" aim in Srinagar has been to try and broad-base the electoral space and get at least sections of the Hurriyat to take part in future electoral battles. This "new thinking" on India's most troubled State has not always been in consonance with the political impulses of the Congress. The installation of a Congress Chief Minister and the party's cosying up with the National Conference betray habits of the past. Nevertheless, the reported talks between the PDP and a section of the Hurriyat - led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Mr Shabir Shah and Mr Bilal Lone - for a possible electoral alliance should be welcomed, albeit cautiously. These leaders represent the business-like face of the Hurriyat; they are legatees of a phase when the Kashmir movement was still more "Kashmiri nationalist" than Islamist. To not recognise them as different from, for instance, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, whose links with Pakistan's Islamo-military establishment are well documented, would be to turn away from reality.

If the more amenable groups in the Hurriyat conglomerate join hands with the Mufti and forge a formal electoral alliance, India has little reason to complain. Despite the rhetoric that is part and parcel of Indian politics, the fact is the Hurriyat leaders would then have accepted the supremacy and the legitimacy of India's democratic process, with all that that acceptance would entail. Fighting an election under the Indian Constitution - not to speak of winning power itself - would subdue extreme positions and make spinning off Kashmir into a separate, "semi-sovereign" territory even less of a possibility. It would also reveal the true strength of those who claim to represent popular opinion in Jammu & Kashmir. From New Delhi's perspective, negotiations with a mainstream political entity would carry greater legitimacy. More important, if next year's Jammu & Kashmir election is fought between a Hurriyat-PDP alliance on one hand and a Congress-NC combine on the other - with the BJP marking its presence in Jammu - it will knock the bottom out of Gen Pervez Musharraf's case for so-called "self-rule". He will be obligated to mirror the Valley's experience in those regions of Jammu & Kashmir that are under Pakistani occupation. This will also affirm one larger principal - that an honourable solution must lie in an arrangement between the Government of India and the political leadership of Kashmiri society. There is no place for interlopers, not across the LoC, not across the Radcliffe Line.
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[Guest]

<b>Geelani may undergo surgery in Delhi</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Earlier this month, Geelani was given a passport valid for a year on humanitarian grounds after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh intervened so that he could seek treatment abroad.

Dr Singh had asked officials to extend all assistance to Geelani to facilitate his visit abroad.
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Terrorist should be given every privildge, suffering is stored for common honest hardworking citizens.
Good going Mr. Moron Singh.

[Guest]

"We Are Working to Create an Islamic State</b>"

[Guest]

came in email:
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Here is an update for you from the Foundation Against Continuing Terrorism (FACT).

You can now view the comprehensive FACT exhibit (on the ongoing Kashmiri Hindu Genocide) online at:

http://www.factusa.org/totalexhibit/exhibition.asp

There are a total of 31 Boards that make up this exhibit.

Please circulate this online exhibit's URL to all your friends - Indian and non-Indian alike, to increase awareness and support for the cause.

Simultaneously, the physical exhibit is being displayed across various cities in North America.

For the press release on Washington DC (Capitol Hill) , see: http://www.factusa.org/PressRelease071305.pdf

For the press release on Houston, see: http://www.factusa.org/PressRelease082205.pdf

In 2007, FACT is similarly coming up with ASRU (Tears), a comprehensive exhibit on the Hindus of Bangladesh . If you would like to help or need more details, please send an email to: contact@factusa.org
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[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>PM: Will seek Army advice on troop cut </b>
Akhilesh Suman | New Delhi
Don't, says Army chief; terrorists changing tactics
A day after his meeting with PDP leader Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserted that no decision on the withdrawal of troops would be taken against the advice of the Army.

"Let me say unambiguously that professional advice, wherever relevant, will be given full scope. There is no question of marginalising professional advice. That misunderstanding or misapprehension has no basis," the Prime Minister said on Friday in response to a pointed query made at the India Today Conclave.

<b>Incidentally, Army chief JJ Singh, who recently visited Jammu and Kashmir, has told the Government that the forces were opposed to any premature withdrawal and their presence was helping in restoring normalcy.</b>

The annual report of the Home Ministry released on Friday also contended that there were positive results from the presence of armed forces in the Valley.

Even though the Prime Minister has rejected Mufti's insistence that there should be no delay in pulling out troops, there were indications that <span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>the Government was considering setting up a committee to go into the issue.</span>
"What more assurance can I give? I have said repeatedly that the force level will correspond to threat perception and security assessment. As and when the situation improves, we will ourselves take steps to effect proper reduction", the Prime Minister told reporters later on the sidelines of a function at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday.

Singh said "we will find a credible solution. They may have different perceptions. But the objective is the same, that the people of Jammu and Kashmir live a life of dignity and self-respect. I have faith in their inherent patriotism".

"Our forces are not an army of occupation. They are there to protect the life and liberty of the citizens. As and when the necessity (of maintaining force level) disappears, we will bring about reduction in forces", the Prime Minister said.

<b>He said the force levels "are not static. If the security situation is under control, we will review them. We review the matter on a regular basis".</b>

However, according to a PTI report, senior PDP sources have said that a principled agreement has been reached in the meeting between the Prime Minister and Sayeed about setting up a panel to study the issue of troop withdrawal and repeal of Special Armed Forces Act. The Pioneer had also reported, before the talks between the Prime Minister and Mufti that the latter would demand setting up of a committee to look into the matter.

The MHA report also supported the views of the security agencies that the presence of the armed forces was warranted in the Valley.

With the increase in pressure on the infrastructure of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, the terrorist have resorted to change their tactics and are trying to remodel themselves in the use of other means of creating an atmosphere of distrust on the armed forces, the report said.

According to the analysis based on the information reaching the Ministry of Home Affairs, the terrorists in the Valley are tight pressed due to the military and paramilitary forces alertness. They are now mobilising protest and public demonstration and exploiting the media to discredit the security forces.

The annual report released by the MHA clearly mentions the fact that due to the alertness of the security forces, the number of terrorist violence has gone down gradually from 2004-05. The data shows that as compared to 2004, the terrorist incidents came down by 22 per cent and the killing of civilians and security forces by 22 and 33 per cent consecutively.

<b>Again, the number of incidents in 2006 went down by 16 per cent and the killing of civilians and security forces was lower by 30 per cent and 20 per cent over the corresponding period of last year.</b>

To keep up their presence in the Valley and failing in attacking the vital places where security alert is obviously high, the terrorists have gone in tactical shift to harm themselves least by targeting the vulnerable sections and easy targets like minorities, migrant labourers and tourists.

The MHA sources feel that there is no change of heart among the terrorists, and they have devised their way to keep their presence alive. Once troop is withdrawn prematurely, they may utilise it for further spate of terror in the Valley.
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Committee-wala will start another committee. This is end product, when you make Babu as PM. <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->

He better listen Army before making another blunder ,but I have zero trust on him. For Congress survival he will make blunder and more dead Indian troops.

[Guest]

US denies visa to Syed Ali Shah Geelani
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Hardline Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who underwent a surgery in Mumbai, has been denied visa by the United States on the ground that he had refused to renounce violence as a weapon to achieve "independence" of Kashmir.
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US denies visa for the Kashmiri separatist while he's being treated in Mumbai!! The irony!! <!--emo&:blink:--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/blink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='blink.gif' /><!--endemo-->

[Guest]

Why in Mumbai? Why not in Srinagar?

[Guest]

<b>No troop cut: Army </b>

Wait till after summer, PM advised

[Guest]

<b>Five Hindus shot dead by terrorists in J&K</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->In a pre-dawn attack, suspected terrorists on Friday shot dead five members belonging to Hindu community and injured four others in Rajouri district, defence officials said.
Four terrorists barged into houses of some minority community members in Panglar village of Rajouri district at around 0200 hours, officials told the agency.

The terrorists forced the people out of their houses and made them assemble in the village ground and opened fire on them, they said.

Two persons, who managed to escape from the scene, informed the Army, which rushed to the spot
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[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Travels along the LoC </b>
Pioneer.com
Ashok K Mehta
Besides connecting Kashmiris belonging to different regions of the State, the mission of Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation, a Delhi-based think tank, is to project their hardships due to wars, infiltration and fencing along the Line of Control (LoC). A CDR team last week toured across the Jammu region from Akhnur to Poonch at the height of the debate on demilitarisation. Clearly no echoes of this shrill political statement were heard south of the majestic Pir Panjal range which greeted us every morning despite the occasional thunderstorm. Unlike the Jhelum, nothing sets the Chenab on fire.

<b>Srinagar, not Jammu, is the jewel in the State crown. People here are very resentful of their second-class status, neglect and inadequate representation in the peace process.</b> Our travels covered Akhnur, Naushera, Jhangar, Rajouri, Mendhar and Poonch, for the most part hugging the LoC and the fence. We were to study the plight of the civilians residing close to the LoC, especially those displaced by operational turbulence.

I was revisiting some of the border posts and towns after the 1965 war. The region is marked with continuity and change. The pickets are exactly where they were along the Cease Fire Line as it was then called. But troop density has increased substantially now after the proxy war of 1989, Kargil (1999) and the elaborate network of fencing (2003-04). The area south of the Pir Panjal is the operational responsibility of 16 Corps with 25 Infantry Divisions in charge all the way from Naushera to Poonch. It is the largest Infantry Division on earth.

The most impressive feature of the new defensive layout is the controversial network of fencing astride the LoC laid in record time of one-and-a-half years at a cost of Rs 200 crore. The then Army Chief, Gen Nirmal Vij, overrode considerable internal opposition to the concept. His idea was to end infiltration across LoC by creating a second-tier suitably lit, electrified, supported with early warning devices and covered by troops. As the fencing could be breached in about six to seven minutes, a quick reaction team had to be able to thwart the attempt. Two years and considerable on-job experience later, the Army has refined its drills to minimise chances of any breakthrough. Snowfall, terrorist genius and vagaries of terrain were factored to renovate and, where necessary, realign the fencing.

The alignment of fencing is being reviewed in 16 Corps. In winter, when snow makes infiltration into the Valley impossible, efforts are trained south of Pir Panjal, first to enter the sector, subsequently to cross the Pir Panjal and enter the Valley. In 2004, the famed Hill Kaka below Pir Panjal had become a transit point for terrorists and had to be cleared through one of the biggest operations after Kargil. Through trial and error, fencing has become very effective and infiltration brought down to five per cent, according to Mr Pervez Malik, Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri. Violence is down to zero and terrorist population has dwindled to around 50. Just when the peace dividend was delivering last week Lashkar-e-Tayyeba killed a family of Hindus in Rajouri in tandem with politically manipulated communal tension in Mendhar. Operationally, fencing, everyone agrees, is an asset but at a cost.

For villagers living near the LoC, fencing has a human dimension. They are either fenced in or fenced out. The difficulty is for the latter as they have to move to their land through gates in the fencing which are regulated by the Army. By dusk, they have to return home in the rear. In Khapriyal near Akhnur and elsewhere people so affected complained about routine inconvenience faced by them, also the inadequacy of compensation. Although Rs 77 crore has been paid by the Army through the civil administration, money may not have reached in all cases.

<b>Kirni in Poonch is the case of a village that had to be vacated in 1991 as it was very close to LoC and dominated by the Pakistan Army posts. It had become a staging post for infiltration launched by Haji Pir Pass and, therefore, had to be sanitised through a tough battle</b>. The villagers were relocated, are fenced in and are shepherded to their old homes daily for grazing cattle. Two villages in Jhangar bowl are the only ones we came across which are happily fenced out: They have not been separated from their land and homes as the LoC is some distance from the villages.

Though Poonch was severely jolted by the earthquake in 2005, its spirit and vibrancy remain intact. It is a picture of communal harmony: Majority Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus cohabiting. Victims of the earthquake Khari-Kharimera are model villages adopted by the Army. For them nature's fury was a blessing in disguise. Close by are Zero Point, Chakkan-da-Bagh and the Poonch-Rawlakot bus terminal. The Poonchis rattled off a plethora of problems pertaining to the arrival and departure procedures of divided families. In one word, 'delay". The Border Roads Organisation, which has a distinguished record, excels in evocative wayside slogans. Near Zero Point is this one: "Bicchre hue bhaiyon ka mel, karishma hai kudrat ka khel".

The Army is the backbone of this region.<b> "Fauj hai, mauj hai" and "without Army there is no security" came out from our interaction with Poonchis</b>. A very amiable and healthy civil-military interaction is evident though that does not rule out hardships faced by the people. While there is a conscious effort to reduce alienation and win hearts and minds through Sadbhavana projects, security forces are under a scanner. Poonch elders narrated a list of excesses by the Army and security forces in the late 1990s in Mandi, Surankot and Marovachai. Some of the incidents are horrendous and, if true, a repudiation of all the 10 or 13 Commandments followed by the Army. At the time of our visit, a local court was allegedly hearing a very creative incident of counter-infiltration masterminded by a Deputy Brigade Commander. Some day soon, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission would be needed to forgive and forget.

Finally, on demilitarisation. Our interlocutors were clear that this issue had been hoisted for political one-upmanship. Even so, there is merit in reviewing the density of troops vis-à-vis the improved ground situation as suggested by the Mufti brigade. <b>Demilitarisation, like strategic, is a frequently misused term. Its implementation is contingent upon de-militantisation.</b> What the good Mufti is talking about is relocation and thinning out from civilian areas vacating civilian property occupied by security forces. Meanwhile, 27 Mountain Division finally permanently returning home to Kalimpong-Darjeeling and being replaced by 39 Infantry Division along the fencing in 16 Corps is only rotation of troops.

My most disconcerting image from the LoC tour is the reaction of our Innova driver. On seeing a military vehicle he would just stop. "Army ki gaadi hai," he would explain.
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[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>FIR registered against Geelani</b>
Srinagar: A case was registered on Sunday against Hurriyat hawk Syed Ali Shah Geelani by the Jammu and Kashmir Police for holding a meeting without prior permission and raising of anti-national slogans at the venue. Meanwhile, the <b>BJP blamed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's "soft policy" towards terrorism after thousands of Kashmiris attended a rally in Srinagar shouting slogans for pro-Pakistan militant outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. </b><!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Forces fear takeover by militants if Valley properties vacated </b>
Pioneer News Service | New Delhi
The ongoing exercise for relocation of troops trenched in orchards and private properties in Kashmir has sent alarm bells ringing in the security establishments. 

<b>Officials feel that security situation in Jammu & Kashmir did not allow relocation of troops as militants will try to occupy the properties, which mainly belonged to the Kashmiri Pandits. They were forced to flee the State when terrorism was at its peak in the early 1990s and many properties were forcibly taken over by the militants</b>.

Sceptical about the Centre's recent directive to the State Government to find alternative locations to house security forces, operational commanders feel such a move will prove disadvantageous for them and give a psychological edge to the terrorists.

<b>About 12,000 acres of orchards and agriculture land, at present, is housing the security forces. Sustained anti-militancy operations over the decade saw the security forces driving out the terrorists from these properties' thereby providing a semblance of peace in the rural hinterland.</b>

<b>Faced with shortage of space, the security forces set up bases in orchards and agricultural land, including those abandoned by the Kashmiri Pandits, officials said here on Monday. However, the properties were identified in consonance with the State administration and compensation was paid to the owners as per rules and regulations, they pointed out</b>.

New Delhi issued the directive to the State Government last week through the Defence Ministry to identify alternative accommodation for the security forces.

The instructions came in the wake of a demand by the People's Democratic Party chief Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's demand that the security forces be moved out of the orchards, private properties and Government buildings. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad also took up the matter with the Centre.

Mufti had threatened last month to pull out of the coalition Government in the State if his demands for demilitarisation and relocation of troops from the orchards and private properties were not addressed. Azad opposed the demand for demilitarisation as the security situation did not warrant and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had to intervene to pacify both the leaders.

The Government then announced the setting up of a committee headed by Defence Minister AK Antony to look into the entire gamut of pulling out or reduction of troops. Two sub-committees were also set up, including one headed by Defence Secretary Shekhar Dutt to study the issue of reduction of troops and the other one to review welfare measures and human rights.

Following the Centre's request, the State Government asked the district superintendents of police to identify suitable locations. However, the exercise was not so simple as it seemed to be as there was paucity of space.

Stressing the point that "dominating an area," where militants once ruled the roost, was the primary concern of the security forces, senior officials said "do you want us to sit on the road and then expect us to carry out sensitive counter-insurgency operations in the rugged hinterland."

<b>Having gained an upper hand over the Pakistan-backed militants through relentless operations over the last decade, they said many orchards, where the security forces were now based, were owned by the minority community.

They were forced to abandon their orchards and agricultural fields in the early 90s when terrorism was at its peak.</b>

The Central security forces were called in to help the local Government to tackle insurgency and many battalions and smaller formations had no option but to move into the abandoned properties due to shortage of space.

Though officially maintaining that they had no problem in shifting to new locations, sources, however, admitted that it was not so easy to do so. Many locations, where the security forces were now stationed, were selected keeping in view their operational and tactical advantages.

"The presence of such camps had definitely helped us in tackling the menace of terrorism as we were able to go after the terrorists at a very short notice after basing ourselves near or amid the rural populace," officials said.
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Plot to kill Kashmir CM foiled<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Pakistan-based groups Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashker-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen had planned to target Azad during his visit to Bandipore, 50 kms from Srinagar, highly placed sources said.

The police had intercepted communications between these groups over the past three days which spoke about the plan to attack Azad when he visited Bandipore to lay the foundation stone of a degree college.

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<b>Kashmiri leader wants J&K trifurcated</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone on Tuesday favoured trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir to 'avoid a violent clash of political interests of the three regions of the state.'

Addressing party workers in Srinagar, coinciding with the fifth death anniversary of his father and PC founder Abdul Gani Lone, Sajad said, "If we want freedom, we must first give it to those who seek it from us."

Sajad said regions of Jammu and Ladakh had a different culture, language, dress and political belief in contrast to that of the Valley.

"The people of Jammu and Ladakh call our struggle, a terrorist movement. They have constantly been holding a grouse against Kashmiris whom they blame for exploitation and all their ills," he added.
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<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone on Tuesday favoured trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir to 'avoid a violent clash of political interests of the three regions of the state.'<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

I have a much easier solution Gand* Loneji. Security forces take all Muslim Kashmiris on Indo-Pak border and kick all Kashmiri Muslims to Pak side of border. All Indians happy as no more Muslim Kashmiris left in India and Muslim Kashmiri happy as by becoming Pak citizens they are finally united with their Paki Muslim bretheren. End Of Kashmir problem.

On a more serious note, the only lasting solution to Kashmir problem is remove article 370, give land on concessional rates in Kashmir to Indians (from other states) as well as to ex-servicemen along with other incentives to them so that they can settle down in Kashmir. The moment Kashmiri Muslim population in Kashmir falls below 10%-20% ( I believe right now it is 90%), Kashmiris will forget these idiotic demands like Azaadi or autonomy.

It is a fact that the Muslims start getting 'khujli' the moment they become majority population in any area and they start talking of things like azaadi in such states. The only way to curb their 'khujli' is to keep their population to less then 10%-20% in all states.

The strategy of Mullah brigade in general in India is:
Stage I: In states where their population is less than majority, keep talking of discrimination, indulge in rioting on slightest pretext i.e. arm twisting tactics to force govt. to accede to their unreasonable demands. Of course, certain ‘pseudo-secular’ parties are more then willing & always ready to shed crocodile tears for Musalmaans (Vote bank politics)

Stage II: Where they become majority, drive all people of other faiths out from that state and then Muslims of that state start talking of separating from India.

And it is the duty of all Sacha Musalmaans to create conditions to try to move from stage I to stage II. E.g. Breed like rabbits, no.2 Since Muslims believe in theory of ‘Pan-Islam’ (Muslims from all over the world are brothers), Indian Muslims don’t mind taking help from their Bangladeshi Muslim Brothers (help Bangladeshi Muslims illegally cross over to India & then help them settle down here) in order to increase the % of Muslims in states like Assam, U.P. to expedite the process of reaching Stage II from Stage I.