Congress leader Rahul Gandhi while speaking at the prestigious Cambridge University said that he confronted militants during the Congress-led Bharat Jodo Yatra’s entry into Kashmir. Gandhi stated, according to a report from India Today, “I spoke to my people and expressed my desire to carry on walking. We kept going when an unidentified man came up to me. He said he wanted to speak with me.” Rahul Gandhi went on to say that the man questioned him as to whether or not the Congress leaders had actually travelled to the Union Territory to hear about the problems of the populace. Later, the man pointed to certain bystanders and claimed they were all militants. “I believed I was in danger because militants would likely kill me in such circumstances. Yet, they did nothing as a result of the power of listening,” Gandhi added.
Central Wool Development Board (CWDB) has approved a Rs 50 lakh project for creating a wool raw material bank in Jammu and Kashmir.
KASHMIR
Representational image
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) attached the house of banned al-Umar Mujahideen Chief Mushtaq Zargar in the Gani Mohalla area of the Nowhatta in Srinagar. NIA action comes as the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has declared Zargar, “presently in Pakistan”, as designated “terrorist” under the UAPA, a stringent act legislated to control militant activities. An NIA team, assisted by local police and paramilitary CRPF, attached Zargar’s property.. According to an NIA spokesperson, Zargar’s two marlas house (Khasra No 182) at Ganai Mohalla, Jamia Masjid, Nowhatta, Srinagar, has been attached under the provisions of UA(P)A. Zargar was arrested on May 15, 1992, and later “released” in 1999, along with Jaish chief Masood Azhar and Sheikh Omar in exchange for passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines plane IC-814 in 1999.
Earlier in the week, NIA also attached the property of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Basit Reshi in Sopore. Reshi is a resident of Yemberzalwari Shiva Dangerpora and is presently in Pakistan. Pertinently, the Jammu and Kashmir police have started the process to attach properties of nearly 168 militants from Jammu and Kashmir who are operating from other the side of the LoC.
As per the New York-based internet advocacy watchdog, Access Now Jammu and Kashmir witnessed 49 internet disruptions in 2022 out of a total of 85 across India.
SRINAGAR
Jammu Kashmir LG, Manoj Sinha felicitating a young cadet of JK Police at PTS Kathua on March 3, 2023. Pic: DIPR
The Amarnath cave shrine that used to be open for pilgrimage for a short summer period may be accessible for a long period in a year as the LT Governor Manoj Sinha administration is planning to make it accessible by road. Sinha chaired a meeting of the officers and Border Roads Organization (BRO) in which the scope for undertaking the widening, restoration and maintenance of the stretch of the Amarnath Yatra track was discussed.
Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy has put the current unemployment percentage in Jammu and Kashmir at 17.1 against 21.8 in January 2023, indicating an appreciation of 4.7 per cent for the month of February 2023.
SRINAGAR
GMC Srinagar
The government has confirmed Prof Dr Masood Tanvir as the Principal of Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar. Dr Masood is head of the medicine department and was given the charge of GMC principal in November 2022, replacing Dr Samia Rashid.
National Investigation Agency (NIA) has issued a non-bailable warrant against 13 Kishtwar-based militants operating from across the border.
JAMMU
The Kashmir crisis is getting so serious that even Congressman and former Sadar-e-Riyasat of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State, Dr Karan Singh is pitching for the restoration of the statehood along with the need for assembly polls which haven’t been held since 2014. Such a demand coming from Dr Singh is interesting because he presided over the state apparatus till 1956 during which the head of the state, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was deposed and imprisoned. Speaking at an event in Jammu, Dr Singh said that there is a lack of communication between the public and bureaucrats in Jammu and Kashmir. When asked to comment on the bifurcation of the erstwhile state into two Union Territories, Dr Singh said, “We should look ahead rather than looking back and added that the same remained his principle in life.” Replying to a question about taking back the regions of Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan, he said that it was not easy as the same could not be materialized without a war which only brings deaths and destruction.
Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir (PSAJK) has urged the administration to exempt educational institutes from the ambit of property tax.
AWANTIPORE
Paramilitary CRPF showcased its bulletproof armoured vehicle, named CSRV (critical situation response vehicle) in the Padgampora encounter with militants. The all-terrain sophisticated CSRV is used for house interventions during encounters. “This acts like a force multiplier, in situations like narrow lanes and by-lanes where you need to sort of intervene in a room or house where a terrorist is held up,” IG CPRF (Kashmir Operations) MS Bhatia was quoted as saying. “This vehicle has a bulletproof Morcha. It has a hydraulic system and can be raised to the second floor of the house as well. It has steer and skid technology, it can revolve 360 degrees, in narrow lanes and by lanes, and it can enter easily.”
Jammu and Kashmir Police said that one of the two militants killed in the Padgampora was behind the killing of Sanjay Sharma who was mowed down in his Achan village, last week. And two of his brothers and parents had not migrated from the village in the 1990s. A bank security guard, Sanjay’s killing was the first attack on a Hindu civilian in Jammu and Kashmir in the last four months.
A preliminary census by Wular Lake Conservation and Management Authority (WCMA) has revealed that over 50,000 migratory birds have made their way to the famous Wular Lake in northern Kashmir.
KUNAN
Kunan (Kupwara) family protests in Srinagar on December 21, 2022, seeking whereabouts of their son, Abdul Rashid Dar
Exactly 75 days after going missing, the body of Abdul Rashid Dar of Kunan (Kupwara) was retrieved and handed back to his family. “In continuation to missing of Abdul Rashid Dar of Kunan area of Kupwara on December 16, 2022 today early in the morning a dead (the body was) recovered from Zurhama-PK Galli forests,” a police spokesperson said in a statement, adding, “The body was brought to SDH Kupwara where it was identified by the relatives of (the) missing person. After completing all medico-legal formalities including post-mortem by a team of doctors, he said, the body was handed over to the family members for burial. “Cognisance of the matter has been taken for further investigations,” he said, adding, “Further details will be shared.” At a presser, a police officer had said that the man was allegedly picked up by the army for questioning in connection with a militancy-related investigation. However, the officer said that he fled from custody. The family, which carried out a series of protests seeking the whereabouts of their ward, had allegedly that Dar picked up by the army for questioning. Dar was a driver.
LG Manoj Sinha said almost 40 per cent of the residential structures in urban and semi-urban areas in Jammu and Kashmir are exempted under the newly created property tax rules.
BAKSHI STADIUM
A group of more than 24 cyclists were flagged off in Srinagar for a race from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. The participants shall peddle the 3651 km length in Solo, Team of 2, Team of 4 with a cut-off time of 12 days, 10 days and 8 days respectively. The race route passes through 12 major states, three major metropolises and over 20 major cities. None of the cyclists was from Jammu and Kashmir. In Pune, Veeranarayan Kulkarni left on a cycle for Kashmir to make people aware of diabetes. He will be cycling a distance of 4,000 km in 40 days.
PULWAMA
Within days after a video showing Bilal Rather, a councillor of MC Pulwama, allegedly misbehaving with a doctor on duty at the District Hospital (DH) Pulwama, went viral, the district administration ordered an inquiry. ADC Pulwama is probing the incident. Rather was seen shouting at a doctor on duty, and even hurling the choicest abuses. After the incident, the staff of the hospital wrote to the administration detailing how a “few miscreants” accompanied a “mob” barged into the room and misbehaved with them. Hospital management also registered a police case against the identified miscreants.
KASHMIR
The thought process (L to R) in male and female brains. Graphics: Economist
India’s largest-ever dementia study has shown that Jammu and Kashmir has the highest prevalence of the condition, a report in a British newspaper said. Some 11 per cent of the region’s over-60 population have developed dementia, according to a joint study published by the University of Southern California and AIIMS-Delhi. “Since the study’s publication, experts have called for further research to establish whether a 26-year insurgency that has raged in Jammu and Kashmir could be a reason for the region’s high prevalence of dementia,” the report said. Earlier in 2019, a survey by Médecins Sans Frontières found 70 per cent of Kashmiri adults had witnessed the sudden or violent death of someone they knew, while the average adult living in the territory has experienced 7.7 traumatic events during their lifetime. “The association between trauma and dementia is a fast-growing area of research,” the report quoted Dr Katrin Seeher, a mental health specialist in the Brain Health Unit at the World Health Organisation, saying. “We do have more and more evidence that exposure to adversity, particularly in early childhood, changes our brain architecture and the ways the brain changes to deal with stress. We do see that early childhood adversity might be linked to later life dementia diagnosis.”
Abandoned many times in the recent past, the Jammu and Kashmir administration has started the process of imposing a property tax that is estimated to fetch Rs 150 crore and augment the resources of the urban local bodies. The move triggered a chain reaction, Khalid Bashir Gura reports
Within days after bulldozers halted the high-pitch anti-encroachment drive, Manoj Sinha-led Jammu and Kashmir administration issued property tax notifications on February 21, 2023, triggering another row. However, this is restricted to urban areas where according to the 2011 census, Jammu and Kashmir’s 27 per cent of population lives. The Housing and Urban Development has notified that it will
assess and collect property tax at five per cent of Taxable Annual Value (TAV) for residential properties and six per cent for commercial properties within the jurisdiction of urban local bodies (ULBs) from April 1, 2023.
Unlike the rest of the country, no property tax was ever imposed in Jammu and Kashmir. There were some efforts between 2010 and 2018 but the stiff opposition frustrated the idea.
Months after reading-down Article 370, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in October 2020 allowed the UT administration to impose a property tax. Well before it could trigger a crisis, Lt Governor insisted that “there is no proposal to impose the property tax in Jammu and Kashmir”. In June 2021, the Badami Bagh Cantonment Board (BBCB) started levying property tax in areas under its jurisdiction in Srinagar but it was not collected.
Now, when almost all districts across Jammu and Kashmir have started working on the notification, almost everybody from Kanak Mandi in Jammu to Old Town in Baramulla is seeking the withdrawal of the notification. Being seen as “arbitrary and undemocratic and anti-people,” trade, politics and lawyers have all opposed the idea.
Property Tax
All municipal bodies across the world levy a property tax. It is already in vogue in the rest of India. Officials in Jammu and Kashmir expect to raise Rs 150 crore in 2023-24 and pump the funds into moribund municipal bodies currently managed by people who were “elected” to the office by controversial elections. Interestingly, the municipal corporations in Srinagar and Jammu have rejected the idea insisting the proposal was supposed to be mooted from them.
Officials said the tax collections will enhance the resources of urban local bodies, which have not been able to deliver as the revenue from other sources accounted for less than 15 per cent of their operational expenses. The property tax policy will enable urban local bodies (ULB) to get enhanced central devolutions and improve their services.
The tax will be 5-6 per cent of the taxable annual value (TAV) of the properties, a base calculated on basis of nine variables – the type of municipality, built area, land value in line with the J&K Preparation and Revision of Market Value Guidelines Rules, 2011, as on the first day of the block, the number of floors, usage type, construction type, age of the property, given slab of the area, and the occupancy status. It will be in vogue for three years and will be calculated annually with a 1000 sq ft area exempted from the tax.
As per Act, 10 per cent rebate can be availed by early submission of property tax. A person liable to the property tax shall be liable to give to the officer authorised in this behalf particulars of property and tax due by May 30 financial year and the second instalment of tax shall be furnished by November 30 along with proof of receipt of the first instalment.
All places of worship, cremation and burial grounds stand exempted. No tax will be levied on vacant land not attached to a structure or building; or municipal property. The properties owned by the government of India and the J&K government are also exempted. But a service charge at three per cent of the TAV will be payable in respect of such properties.
According to the notification, in case of failure to pay tax, a penalty of Rs 100 or one per cent will be imposed as the maximum amount shall not exceed Rs 1000. “Failure to file return in due time, unless prevented by sufficient cause, will result in a penalty of Rs 100, or 1 per cent of the tax due, whichever is higher, for every month of default, without prejudice to the interest due for the delay in payment,” it reads.
Land Costs
In the evaluation of the land value, the rates that are fixed under the law for particular areas will be fundamental. Many years back, the government felt a serious requirement of having a basic ceiling for the value of the land resource in urban as well as rural areas. Every few years, the top officials in a district sit and evaluate the costs of land on basis of its real market worth for residential as well as commercial purposes. These costs are basic. Once a property is changing hands, the purchaser has to pay the stamp duty strictly as per the minimum prices set by the committee. This process has improved the stamp duty collections.
The growth of revenue in the stamp duty collection has shown a steep hike of 56.12 per cent as the total collection made has reached Rs 425 crore in 2021-22 against Rs 272.22 crore recorded during 2020-21. It is expected to be better by the end of the current fiscal.
These land rates will now be basic to the evaluation of property tax the same way as it has been for the registration of immovable assets for requirements of stamp duty.
Reactions
The decision triggered a row as political parties opposed the move tooth and nail and have demanded its immediate withdrawal. The common refrain across political classes is that it is untimely and its legitimacy in absence of an elected government is a question mark. They justify the opposition to the idea on basis of the economic downturn after 2019, owing to various factors including Covid19, political instability, inflation, and unemployment.
NC and Congress, now vehemently opposing the move, initiated the bills for the imposition of property tax in 2010 and managed its passage in the erstwhile assembly. A subsequent bill for setting up the property tax board was cleared in 2013. However, the process was binned as the government feared the move will have serious fallout on the electoral prospects in the 2014 Lok Sabha and assembly polls.
“No taxation without representation, why should people in J&K pay state taxes, including the proposed property tax, when we have no say in how our government is run and no say in the decision-making of J&K?” Omar Abdullah, in whose era the bills were initiated, said in a tweet. “We are expected to be mute spectators to all unjust decisions by Raj Bhavan.”
NC’s Jammu president, Ratan Lal Gupta terms the tax as Jaziaand insists the peoples’ paying capacity has dipped to an all-time low. He sees it as the move to “impoverish” and make “lives miserable”. He said for allaying the distress of the people, there should be elections and decisions on property tax will be taken by representatives of the people.
Jammu and Kashmir is without an elected government since 2018 summer – almost 56 months.
Congress president Vikar Rasool sees the tax as an “injustice” for people who are battling high rates of inflation, unemployment and low business due to government policies. It is like an emergency, he added.
“The people of Jammu and Kashmir are being oppressed and are distressed economically and politically. There is terrorism in J&K unlike in the rest of the country. There should be elections and such decisions should be left to elected governments,” Congress spokesperson Ravinder Sharma said. “
It is like a dictatorship procedure. Taxation is not new to Kashmiris as we have been paying taxes in different shapes since Maharajas times. But this time the economy is derailed and the orders come from the top which renders ULBs useless,” added GA Mir, former JKPCC president.
Former Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti said the tax was part of the BJP’s larger agenda of impoverishing the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“These tactics are to keep people of Jammu and Kashmir under never-ending stress and trauma so that they can’t focus towards their genuine demands,” PDP spokesperson Mohit Bhan said. “Imposition of local taxes is the prerogative elected representatives of Municipal Corporation or Panchayats and such arbitrary orders prove the administration has no regard for any institution and they just want to bulldoze everything which comes in their way.” Bhan said the government orders are like earthquakes and floods.
People’s Conference president Sajad Gani Lone alleged the government of perpetrating economic euthanasia. “Property tax in aftermath of -an year lost post-2019, a couple of years lost in Covid is – seems determination to turn every stone that can be turned to ensure economic euthanasia. Governments have pumped billions worldwide to bump start ailing economies,” Lone tweeted. His party colleague Basharat Bukhari regretted that while in the rest of the world, governments are offering packages and creating employment opportunities post-pandemic, it is completely vice versa in Jammu and Kashmir.
Apni Party said the “unprecedented and big decision” should not be taken by LG administration and should ideally be left to an elected government.
“This is a return gift by the BJP to the people, who voted for them,” Harsh Dev, who returned to his Panthers Party said. “It has imposed so many taxes in the past like GST and created inflation in the country as the security situation is adverse, the unemployment in J&K is the highest in the country, and the economy is in shambles.”
Terming the decision as “arbitrary and undemocratic,” CPI (M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami said levying property tax in the absence of an elected government is quite unconstitutional. “Whatever elected formations exist on the ground, they have to decide. Why are they depriving these ULBs of their own legitimate rights of decision-making? The process of collecting tax and deciding the values of the tax is the sole prerogative of these institutions. How does an officer in Raj Bhavan know the terrain in Habba Kadal,” Tarigami said as he demanded elections in the UT if according to government claims, all is well.
The newly formed Democratic Azad Party (DAP) also voiced its concern about taxation and questioned the timing. There is a need to understand that for the past three decades, the people in Jammu and Kashmir have suffered in every aspect due to militancy, Azad said. This has triggered unemployment and weakened the economic condition. “I can only say that the time is not apt for the move because of the economic conditions of the people here,” he said.
BJP state spokesman Altaf Thakur said that tax is being paid in every city of India. “In J&K it was in vogue during 1962 and 1982 when these regimes were ruling who are vehemently opposing it. However, we are also requesting LG to defer its imposition as the UT has been going through a bad phase due to militancy for the last three decades which weakened UT’s economy,” he said as it is not the right time.
Bar Associations
The political class apart, other sections of society reacted to the development as well. There were protests in certain towns. Normally, the lawyers were the first to come to the streets. The reaction was vocal in Jammu, unlike Kashmir.
Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association’s outgoing president MK Bhardwaj asked the administration to withdraw the notification.
Terming it “tax terrorism”, the president asked the administration to stop pursuing “anti-people” policies in Jammu and Kashmir. “Jammu and Kashmir can’t be equated with other UTs or states in the matter of taxations, especially when no facilities of the like are available here,” he said urging the government to raise the economic status of people first. The bar association at Jammu suspended work for a day. “We have an anti-encroachment drive where the people in possession of land for over decades together are deprived of their land,” they said.
Trade followed the lawyers. Newly appointed Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry President, Javid Ahmad Tenga said, the trade body is assessing property tax. However, he said it is not the right time to impose it as people’s financial conditions are not good. Jagmohan Singh Raina, who is also part of the KCCI body said, as central laws are being applied to J&K, the process is being carried out without local consensus.
“We have for long being governed by bureaucrats,” Shakeel Qalander, a former FCIK president said. “They don’t consider the reality on the ground while formulating policies. Even though this property tax is being imposed everywhere, we are an exception as we had to unlike others grapple with turbulences for decades as well natural disasters like floods and pandemic.”
Unlike Kashmir, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Jammu was vocal. “Chamber is of the firm opinion that this order of imposition of property tax should be withdrawn by the government to give a sigh of relief to the people of Jammu and Kashmir”, Chamber President Arun Gupta said. “If the government fails to understand our feeling than we shall have no other option but to go for a bandh call by consulting civil societies, bar association and others”.
Last year, Gupta said the idea of imposing the tax was mooted but the Chamber opposed it and the idea was shelved.
Miffed Mayors
Srinagar’s Mayor, Junaid Azim Mattoo said that the decision was not approved by elected ULBs and thus the SMC will explore ways to contest this ‘arbitrary move’.
“Imposition of Property Tax in J&K is ironically violative of municipal empowerment as this has neither been deliberated upon, nor approved by elected ULBs. While SMC will explore ways to contest this arbitrary move, I am writing to the Hon’ble LG seeking a withdrawal of the SO,” Mattoo tweeted
Similarly, his deputy, Parvaiz Ahmad Qadri urged people not to panic over property tax. “People need to understand that the proposal has to be first passed by the Srinagar Municipal Corporation. We are rejecting it even before its arrival. It won’t get the consent of corporators. People should not panic,” he tweeted.
Qadri said the tax was not implemented since 2000 despite being a law in vogue. “Why do we need to take money from people? If the UT had been developed then we may have asked for taxes but even the basic amenities like sanitation, drainage, and street lights are not even working,” he rued.
Asked that the tax collections are supposed to add to the ULB resources, the deputy mayor said that there is no dearth of funds but bureaucrats lead the resources lapse. “Last year, only 30 per cent of funds could be utilized in the city and the rest lapsed. The files in which we had proposed plans gathered dust till March. They give approval at the eleventh hour when we have no time to meet a deadline,” he claimed.
Unlike his counterparts in Srinagar, the mayor in the winter capital termed it as a reformative move.
Jammu Mayor, Rajinder Sharma said that it has been imposed across the country except for Jammu and Kashmir and local body institutions need their revenue generation resources. “Our grants are linked to this resource. If we do not get property tax, the centre will not fund us liberally. The Centre has funded crores of rupees to each ward, unlike the past. We must now get independent,” Sharma said. “The Property Tax has been imposed by the Administrative Council of the Union Territory and not by the JMC. In a democratic set-up, the Administrative Council has superseded us and they have the power to do so.”
Progressive Taxations
In response to the widespread reaction, Jammu and Kashmir Housing and Urban Development Secretary, H Rajesh Prasad talked to the media in Jammu. He indicated the expected Rs 150 crore collection will improve municipal services. He said the residents were imposed the least tax slabs if compared to the rest of the country.
“Better municipal services are expected to attract more investment and encourage more people to set up businesses in Jammu and Kashmir. Revenue generated from Property Tax will be used to improve infrastructure, build new parks and playgrounds and maintain the already existing facilities which will significantly enhance the services provided by municipal bodies,” Prasad said.
Prasad said that tax rates are notified in such a way that its implications are progressive in nature with minimum implication to small businesses and households as according to him, it is to be levied annually and can be paid in two equal instalments, it will not be burdening common citizens.
A day after issuing the notification, the government said the tax rates were one of the lowest in the country – almost half that of Himachal Pradesh, and one-fourth to one-sixth, overall, of other states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Delhi.
The tax rates are 25 per cent lower in the municipal councils and 50 per cent in municipalities. “Residential property with built-up area up to 1500sftare also discounted ensuring relief from Lower Income Group and Middle Income Group category residential houses. Similarly, small commercial establishments especially shops up to the size of 100sqft and 200sqft are also provided relief with very minimal tax implications,” the spokesman said.
The debate is on. Deputy Commissioners have started the process of implementation of the notification. Some Deputy Commissioners said most of the towns in their jurisdiction will be impacted by the new tax to less than half indicating that Srinagar and Jammu cities will be the major source for Property Tax collections. LG Sinha also reacted. His last statement on the issue was a question: “In Jammu and Kashmir, people pay to use internet data, buy I-phones and play videos; I wonder why there is a hue and cry over the imposition of property tax?”
Post Script
Lt Governor Manoj Sinha spoke on the issue of property tax after fierce reaction against the idea from political class and the business in Jammu and Kashmir.
“This is the lowest property tax rates that are being imposed,” Sinha told reporters on the side-lines of a function at SKICC on February 27, 2023. “It is almost one-tenth of what is in vogue in Shimla, Dehradun and other places.”
Offering statistics, Sinha said there are 5,20,000 residential structures in Jammu and Kashmir’s urban space. Of them, 206000 have a built-up area of 1000 sq ft which are already exempted. In 203600 residential structures which are built above 1000 sq ft but below 1500 sq ft will have to pay Rs 1000 a year. Of these 203600 houses, he said in almost 80 per cent of the structures, the owners will be paying no more than Rs 600 a year.
Sinha said there are 101000 shops across Jammu and Kashmir and 46 per cent of them fall under a 100 sq ft area and will have a minimum of Rs 700 a year. There are only 30000 shops which are spread over less than 2000 sq ft. These will be paying Rs 2000 a year.
“Nearly 75 to 80 percent of the population of JK will be exempted from the Property Tax. Those who are falling under the purview of Property Tax are trying to create chaos and confusion among the common masses”, the Lieutenant Governor reiterated on March 2.
Sinha said the citizens across the country are paying Property Tax. Property Tax proposed for Jammu and Kashmir is one-tenth of Shimla-the capital of neighbouring Himachal Pradesh”, he said and pointed out that on an average Rs 900 to Rs 1000 to be paid annually as Property Tax.
LG said that aim of proposing this tax is to develop the cities of Jammu and Kashmir. “Every year government grants funds worth Rs 900 crores to the urban local bodies of JK. Property Tax will be directly deposited to the concerned urban local bodies for the overall growth and development of the area,” he added.
The Shopian Sqay Association players have won medals in two championships, 14 gold and four silver medals at South Asian Sqay Championship and Tri-National International Championship. The 7th South Asian Sqay Championship and tri-nation international 2023 was held in Kathmandu, Nepal. The players include Khatija Tul Kubra, Shahzadi Lariba, Tawqeer Ashraf, Shahzaib Shakeel, Junaid Shafi and Faizan Ayoub Khan have won gold medals under different categories and Faizan Gulzar and Durdana Yousuf won the silver medal in the championship. In the Tri-National international championship 2023, Tahneet Mushtaq, Anish Zahoor, Zaid Bin Hassan, Mohd Huzaif, Shafeeq Ah Malik, Owais Mushtaq, Danish Aijaz and Haamid Rashid won gold while Umer Masood and Khansa Bashir have won silver medals.
Our Little Squay Champion Abid Aijaz from Ganderbal after returning from 7th South Asian Squay champinship Katmandu Nepal with a silver medal. pic.twitter.com/7sc8rzkWBo
The Jammu and Kashmir government enhanced the wages of daily engaged Daily Rated Workers, including Casual Labourers from Rs 300 per day to Rs 311 with effect from October 2022.
LADAKH
Retired Brigadier Dr BD Sharma took over as Ladakh LG on February 19, 2023. This photograph was taken after clicked after he was administered the oath of office by Chief Justice Jammu and High Court Mr Justice N Kotiswar Singh.
Brigadier (Dr) B D Mishra (Retired) has taken oath as the new Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Ladakh. He became the second LG of the Himalayan region by replacing R K Mathur, who held the office since 2019 when Ladakh became the union territory. The 83-year-old Mishra is a former brigadier of the Indian Army and the former Commander of the Counter Hijack Force of the National Security Guard (NSG), popularly known as the Black Cat Commandos. His appointment came on the heels of a stalemate in Ladakh where the Kargil Democratic Alliance and Leh Apex Body have been asking for statehood to the region along with a legislature, schedule-VI safeguards, and an additional parliament seat.
The government has started the Innovative Extension Approaches for Revitalising Agriculture in Jammu and Kashmir with Rs 463 crore earmarked for creating 2000 Kissan Khidmat Ghars, which will serve as a One Stop Centre for extending farmer-oriented services
RAMBAN
Landslides damage 5 houses in J&K’s Ramban
At least 13 houses and a road stretch of 200 meters was damaged in an incident of ‘land erosion’ at Duksar Dal areas of Gool in Ramban district. The affected families were shifted the safer places. The land sliding had been witnessed in the area for three consecutive days. DC Ramban said a requisition has been sent for expert advice from geologists to ascertain the reasons. Meanwhile, in the Rezan area of the Ganderbal district, soil erosion led to damage to several houses. In the Noorabad area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district, a landslide damaged five shops belonging to Fayaz Ahmad Hajam and Abdul Majeed Hajam. A house also suffered minor damage.
As per official figures, Kupwara’s Hagnikoot and Nichahama have 9 Lakh metric tonne Lignite deposits while Awoora and Zirhama have 8 lakh metric tonne high-quality Marble deposits
SRINAGAR
Racing for career, Kashmir young girls at a JK Police recruitment rally at Humhama Srinagar in June 2021. Photo: JKP
The government cancelled the results of two Border Battalions of Jammu and Kashmir Police after “observing” some discrepancies. The examination for 1300 Constable posts in JK Police Border Battalion was conducted in October last year and the results were declared in January 2023. An official notification issued by Additional Director General of Police Coordination PHQ Danesh Rana stated that after the declaration of the final result issued on January 25, 2023 in respect of candidates of UT of Jammu and Kashmir who have participated in the recruitment process for the post of Constable in two Border Battalions of Jammu and Kashmir Police conducted in terms of the above-referenced advertisement notifications, some discrepancies in the said result were observed.
QAZIGUND
Thousands of fish at a spring in the Babapora (Qazigund) died after the water body developed a low concentration of oxygen. In a never-before incident, the dead fish were flushed towards the mouth of the spring. Spring is the natural exit point at which groundwater emerges out of the aquifer and flows onto the top of the Earth’s crust to become surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere as well as a part of the water cycle.
As per officials, a spring located at Babapora with good discharge for the past many years was selected as a source for this water supply scheme for villages – Babaporateng, Mandhole and Chandian Pajan. They said there was a reduction in the discharge of the spring in such a way that almost all the fish (in quintals) which were initially inside the spring under the hillock came out towards the mouth of the spring, which has never happened before. This created panic for us as well as the local people, they said.
SRINAGAR
Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry elected its new leadership on February 22, 2023.
Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCC&I) elected its new executive committee with 21 candidates in the fray emerging victorious. The KCC&I later elected its office bearers and the Executive Committee with Javid Ahmad Bhat (Tenga) elected as President, and Ashaq Hussain Shangloo and Fayaz Ahmad Punjabi being elected as Sr. Vice President and Jr. Vice President respectively. Faiz Ahmad Bakshi has been elected as Secretary General while Dr Umar Nazir Tibetbaqal is the new Jt. Secretary-General and Zubair Mahajan has been appointed as Treasurer. Akib Chaya bagged the highest number of votes with 453 voting in his favour followed by Umar Nazir Tibatbaqal with 444 votes.
PATTAN
In a strange incident, a government school teacher posted in the Pattan area of Baramulla district assaulted his colleague and bit his ear. The incident took place on February 21 after the two teachers entered into a verbal brawl over some discussion on managing charge of school assignments. As the teachers exchanged heated arguments, one of the teachers attacked his colleague and bite his ear. Following the incident, the J&K Police in Pattan arrested a teacher for assaulting his colleague and registered an FIR in the case as well. An official said the teacher who was attacked has got around 6 stitches in his ear. Meanwhile, the district education authorities in Baramulla have ordered an inquiry into the matter and are mulling taking departmental action against the teacher.
SRINAGAR
Jairam Ramesh
Former colleagues, Jairam Ramesh and Ghulam Nabi Azad are at loggerheads once again, as Azad has slapped the Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh with a defamation notice for reportedly calling him a “slave”, “Mir Jafar” and a “vote- cutter”. In the notice, which has been sent through Azad’s legal counsel Naresh Kumar Gupta, the DAP chief seeks compensation of Rs 2 crore from the Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh for causing damage to his “unblemished reputation”. It is pertinent to mention that earlier in January, the senior Congress leader took a jibe at Ghulam Nabi Azad’s DAP by calling it the “Disappearing Azad Party” after the exit of the leaders from the newly formed DAP. Earlier during Bharat Jodo Yatra’s J&K leg, Ramesh had called DAP chief “Mir Jafar” and alleged that he had been propped up by the BJP to cut the Congress’ votes in J&K.
RAMBAN
social media
A teacher has been suspended for allegedly criticising policies of the government on social media platforms in the Ramban district. According to an order, Joginder Singh, teacher GPS Chanderkote was suspended for criticising policies of the government on social media platforms. The teacher, as per the order, has been attached to the office of chief education officer Ramban and an inquiry committee has also been constituted, which will be headed by additional district development commissioner Ramban to probe the matter.
KARNATAKA
Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed various groups after inaugurating various development projects in Srinagar on Monday, October 25, 2021. KL Image by Bilal Bahadur
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said that by reading- down Article 370, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made the “merger” of Jammu Kashmir forever with India. Speaking at an election rally in Sandur, Karnataka Shah praised the government’s move and highlighted the significant improvement in the situation in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation. Shah refuted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claims of a bloodbath in the region, stating that the abrogation has led to the lowest figures of terrorism-related incidents. The Home Minister also added that the move has led to a lot of positive changes in the region. The abrogation of Article 370, which had caused harm to the country, was a significant move made by the BJP-led government in 2019, Shah said. Despite opposition from various political parties, the government’s decision has permanently ensured Jammu and Kashmir’s integration into India. The improved situation in the region has been well-received and is a cause for celebration for the entire country, he added.
PULWAMA
Robbers brandishing toy guns loot the Sopore family
In a bizarre incident in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, five villagers were allegedly looted by extortionists holding a “toy gun’. The incident was reported from Trichal village barely 3 kilometres away from the Pulwama district headquarters. As per reports, five villagers who were intending to enter the mosque to offer Fajr prayers were stopped by three extortionists who were probably carrying toy pistols. The victims have been identified as Tawseef Ahmed Bhat son of Ali Muhammad Bhat, Muzafar Ahmed Dar son of Ghulam Hasan Dar, Javaid Ahmed Mohand son of Ghulam Hasan Mohand, Haji Ali Muhammad Dar and Muhammad Shaban Bhat son of Ali Muhammad Bhat.
KOKERNAG
Saddam Nab Azad, with his right hand, raised, son of Ghulam Nabi Azad has joined the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP). He was seen at the party’s youth convention at Nigheen Club on February 26, 2023.
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is also the chairperson of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), has announced that if his party wins the upcoming assembly elections, he will bring back the Roshni Act in the Union Territory. The Act, which provides ownership rights to occupants, was initially passed in 2001 by the National Conference government but was repealed in 2018 by the then-governor Satya Pal Malik. Addressing a rally at Larnoo Kokernag, Azad expressed his concern over the economic crises in Jammu and Kashmir and said that his aim is to build the region as a welfare state, where the economy grows to the extent that people are willing to pay taxes themselves. He emphasized that the poor are being crushed by rising electricity bills, water charges, and property taxes.
SRINAGAR
High Court of Jammu and Kashmir
The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh directed the authorities to proceed with the termination of an 18-20-week pregnancy of an alleged minor rape victim after having a fresh examination of the victim and after the father of the minor gives “extra high-risk consent.” The victim’s father had approached the court seeking termination of the pregnancy of the minor. In the rape case, an FIR was registered at a police station in north Kashmir on February 14.
SRINAGAR: Last rites of Sanjay Sharma, an ATM bank guard, who was shot dead by militants on Sunday, were performed on Monday in his native place. Hundreds of villagers attended the funeral and stood with the grief-stricken family.
PDP president visited the family of a slain bank guard, Sanjay Sharma at their ancestral residence in Achan Pulwama on February 27, 2023. Sanjay was killed on Sunday by unidentified militants in his village.
Sanjay Sharma’s family was the only Pandit family living in the otherwise Muslim-majority Achan village as they had refused to leave their native village in the 1990s. Of the four brothers, only one had migrated and is living in Udhampur. His parents also stayed put and passed away in the same village.
The Jammu and Kashmir police are suspecting the role of The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow militant outfit of the Lashkar-e-Taiba ( LET) in the killing of Sanjay Sharma. Quoting Additional Director General (ADGP) Vijay Kumar, The Hindu reported that LeT’s TRF is behind the killing and police have stepped up the search for three local and two foreign militants active in the region.
To denounce the killing and to express condolence and solidarity with the family silent candlelight protests were held at many places in the valley. One such protest was reported from Pulwama’s main Chowk.
“In a fight between Muslim Kashmir and Hindu India, religious minorities living in Kashmir are becoming a scapegoat,” KPSS, a Srinagar-based Pandit group said. It called for initiating a “brutal operation” against the killers.
BJP also held protests at several places in Kashmir and burnt an effigy of Pakistan, holding the neighbouring country responsible for the killing. The main protest was held in the Jawahar Nagar area of the city where dozens of party workers protested against the killing. Protesting party workers appealed to the LG administration to ensure the security of minorities and take steps to prevent such incidents in future.
SRINAGAR: Kashmir did figure in the just concluded 3-day All India Congress Committee (AICC) plenary session in Raipur. The resolution offered clear ideas about its Kashmir policy, apparently vindicating what was already around.
Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka in Kheer Bhawani temple in Ganderbal after the Bharat Jodo Yatra was formally over on January 31, 2023.
There were two mentions of Kashmir. One in Rahul Gandhi’s speech after the session was over and another in the party’s resolution.
“52 years past and I still don’t have home, but when reached Kashmir felt like home,” Rahul Gandhi said. He concluded his yatra in Srinagar and made a speech amid a snowfall. Later he spent many days in Gulmarg to cool his heels. “Yatra was to make people of all castes and age groups feel at home. People were not talking about political things to me during yatra but it all changed when I reached Kashmir (sic).”
Gandhi’s Kashmir links apart, the grand old party is not interested in reinstating Article 370 or retaining encouraging Ladakh to rejoin Jammu and Kashmir. It wants early restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and protect Ladakh culture by the extension of the Sixth Schedule.
“The people of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh have always stood by the country and its sovereignty. Congress reaffirms that the whole of Jammu & Kashmir is part of India. Owing to the drastic steps taken in August 2019, the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir has been bifurcated summarily,” the draft resolution read. “Congress will strive to restore complete statehood for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir, and bring Ladakh and its people under the protection of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India.”
Gandhi in Srinagar had also asserted that his party would want early elections in Jammu and Kashmir and restoration of the statehood. He avoided Article 370.
Interestingly, Home Minister Amit Shah asserted on the floor of the house on the day he read down the special status of Jammu and Kashmir that statehood will be restored and elections will be held. However, he offered no deadline for either of the two commitments.
Congress’s silence on the special status of Jammu and Kashmir indicated that the party will avoid raking an issue that will cost it in elections. A section within Congress is not opposed to the August 5, 201decision-makingng though they insist the way it was done could have been avoided.
Years after the cricket body remained in news for all the wrong reasons, the JKCA is gradually emerging as a ‘game reserve’, reports Raashid Andrabi
A March 2022 photograph showing the JKCA managers and the cricketers. A JKCA photograph
Off late, Jammu and Kashmir’s cricketing reputation was upswing, both domestically and internationally. The region saw the emergence of a number of speedsters, some clocking speeds of over 150kmph. Now, insiders in the game red-flag JKCA’s alleged favouritism in selections and offering opportunities to ‘friends’ skipping merit. The cricket body was already mired in controversy for corruption and top federal investigators probed it for years.
This season, the JK Ranji Trophy squad faced the music. Their solitary victory against Vidarbha was largely down to the individual brilliance of Abid Mushtaq; as the team went on to suffer four substantial losses. Parvez Rasool and Abdul Samad were sorely missed, as the team faced setbacks and humiliations. The result of six losses from seven games was far from expected. One of the most well-known Kashmiri cricketers admitted to this reporter that the team had not been performing well and that the recent talent hunts held by the JKCA had been less than successful.
“During talent hunts, cricketers who weren’t prepared were forced to play for more than three straight days. Was it only to test their abilities, regardless of the injuries they sustain?” the cricketer, who wishes to stay anonymous said. “Even after excelling in the hunt, they are sitting at home because someone with a solid fraternity connection gets to participate.(This is why) we are playing poorly.”
While the region has produced some excellent players in the past, more work needs to be done to ensure that the game remains exciting. “Are we performing well? Since the beginning of time, we have consistently won games. Right now, the only difference is how much attention the organization is receiving from mainstream media.”
Selection Process
For the last many years now, JKCA has been news, not for cricket. Now, it is facing scrutiny over its selection process, with many current and former players voicing their discontent.
“I was part of the JKCA for around three years and was one of the best run scorers, but was suddenly kicked out of the club for playing a local match without their permission,” another cricketer told this reporter. “I had to play since I needed to provide for my family and JKCA was unable to do so. What is tragic, some players who joined me for local matches are still part of the club, likely due to divine connections.”
Questions are being raised about the JKCA selectors like on what basis did they select the teams? There are cries for more accountability and transparency.
Officials. however, have their claims. “JKCA has achieved something unprecedented; all of the Under-19, Under-25, and Senior Men’s teams have reached the knockout stages of the white ball cricket tournament for the first time in JKCA history,” Majid Dar, a former Ranji cricketer, currently in-charge of cricket development in Kashmir, said. Denying that players from the Jammu region received preferential treatment, Majidinsisted the selection process was based on skill and talent.
The new naya Kashmir JKCA is run by a three-member sub-committee appointed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India – Anil Gupta, MithunManhas, and Sunil Sethi.
A Bias?
“The IPL 2023 auction pool saw 21 players from Jammu and Kashmir, which is a testament to the strong performances of the JKCA teams in recent times,” Majid said.“With such a large representation of players in the IPL, JKCA has cemented its place as a leading cricket association in India.”
“I played for JKCA for more than two years and performed well consistently. I was dropped from numerous competitions. At the prime of my game, this could have been a life-changing moment for me, but instead, I was dropped, and someone with no recent performances was picked,” one promising Kashmir bowler said. “I am not saying that everything that JKCA does is improper. But the fact remains that bias and favouritism are currently at their peak. Check the roster for any recent domestic league; there are more players from the other side of the tunnel.”
In India, domestic cricket has remained plagued by nepotism. Now JKCA brought the same to the new naya Kashmir. Seemingly, JKCA is exhibiting a strong love for Jammu cricketers. The last match played by the JKCA team tells its own story. It had seven members from Jammu and one from Dehradun.
An Illustration
Mateen Teli is a star fast bowler from Sopore’s Arampora area. Now living in the United Kingdom for the last five years, he has a remarkable story to tell – a story of rejections and successes.
As a school kid, Teli would sneak out of his house to play cricket in the neighbourhood. Concerned that their ward is obsessed with cricket, his parents shifted him to a boarding school in Delhi. There, he continued playing cricket and was shortlisted for the Under-19 trials. Despite receiving offers from clubs like Bengal Railways and practising at the national cricket academies, he still had not received a final call for a full-time cricket contract. Then, one day, Teli’s instinct led him back to Kashmir.
“I amazed everyone after participating in my first trails in Kashmir. I was told that I would soon represent JKCA in the under-23 division, so I simply will have to stop by the nets for a while,” Teli said. “After five years, I continued playing for the nets, sweating it out in practice, but I was never given the opportunity.” Shattered, Teli eventually gave up cricket.
Later, he moved to the UK to pursue his studies where he occasionally played tape ball in the backyard. “One day, I was approached by a group of players from Cavaliers and Carrington Cricket Club, one of the premier cricket clubs in the UK, asking me to join their team as a bowler,” Teli said. “I picked up cricket again, and I was one of the best players that year, I was selected to play as a net bowler for the England cricket team. It is a huge accomplishment when a non-native gets to play alongside stars like Alex Hales and Jonny Bairstow, and after wowing them all in the net I received recognition from superstars like Paul Collingwood.”
Teli said he regrets that back home, there was no opportunity but far away from home there were people who recognised his capacity and gave him a chance.
A Record Keeper
Kashmir-based sports journalist and cricket analyst Mohsin Kamal has been following JKCA for years, knowing both sides of the game. He believes cricket in Jammu and Kashmir improved significantly in recent years and players are disciplined and committed unlike before. “Almost five cricketers made it to IPL this year. But have they made it because of the system?” Mohsin said. “I would suggest you trace their stories. Better infrastructure apart, you need a transparency system and unbiased management.” He has reported JKCA’s all talent hunts, which was an impressive outreach. “Did most of the players who performed well in these matches made it to national teams?”
SRINAGAR: Former All India Congress Committee (AICC) President Rahul Gandhi (MP) Sunday chaired a meeting of Party leaders of Kashmir and exhorted them to work for the betterment of people.
Gandhi expressed serious concern over the difficulties confronting people in absence of the democratic system in J&K while slamming the Govt for snatching the rights of people.
Rahul Gandhi in a meeting with the party leaders of Kashmir expressed serious concern over the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir while slamming the Centre Govt for failing people on all counts.
Gandhi said J&K was divided into to UTs against the wishes of the people besides they are being abandoned of their democratic rights by the BJP aiming to hide its (BJPs) wrong policies and utter failure on all fronts, but the Congress shall continue to fight for the democratic rights of the people and ensure justice to them, he said.
Gandhi slammed the current eviction drive in J&K terming it BJP’s deliberate move to divert attention of the people from real issues especially rising unemployment, unprecedented price hike and other developmental issues concerning people.
Gandhi also expressed confidence that people especially the youth are joining the Congress party given its pro people policies urging Party leaders to keep their doors open for those wishing to join Congress and encourage them to work for the wellbeing of the people.
Gandhi told the Party leaders that he (RG) will continue to visit J&K as that he feels their pain and anguish, he will leave no stone unturned to ensure justice to people of J&K, who have undergone enormous hardships due to the wrong policies adopted by the BJP Govt towards J&K, Gandhi added.
Speaking on the occasion AICC General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi urged the party leaders to work hard to strengthen the Congress party at grass roots and perform their legitimate role to resolve people’s issues, for the fact, Congress Party is an instrument of service to the people.
AICC Incharge Rajni Patil (MP) and JKPCC President Vikar Rasool Wani briefed Shri Rahul Gandhi about the organizational affairs and activities in J&K.
SRINAGAR: Peoples Democratic Party president and former chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti said that during the coalition government of PDP and BJP, she didn’t allow BJP agenda to prevail in Jammu and Kashmir and that she doesn’t take statements of Home Minister Amit Shah seriously as those are “Jumlas” only.
Addressing a news conference, Mehbooba, as per the news agency KNO appealed to the people to take control of their land as it belongs to them and in absence of the government, people including Mohalla Committees, Panchayats and others should take control of their land in respective areas.
“People were earlier being called anti-national and now they are being called encroachers,” she said while replying to a query.
She added people are being suppressed by one way or the other, however, sentiments of people about Kashmir resolution cannot be jailed like the way people, especially youth have been jailed and shifted to outside.
“Those who have been jailed are being given bread and salt as food,” she said.
Reacting to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s interview yesterday, she said there are no facts in his statement, as he has himself admitted earlier that statements are just ‘Jumlas’.
“J&K State has been downgraded to Union Territory, the economy is at stake, but to divert the attention from main issues, J&K has become a focal point for them for this purpose,” she said.
On being asked about “Naya Kashmir” statement, she said employed people are being unemployed by throwing them out of departments, people including journalists are being jailed and houses are being demolished, which is Naya Kashmir.
On G-20 summit, she said that the summit at a time of raiding BBC offices and demolishing houses will have serious consequences for country’s reputation.
Mehbooba added that it is a tactic to demolish the houses of people to force them to join a particular party and get money from the rich people and nothing beyond that.
On PDP’s coalition with BJP, she said her father had taken a wise decision. “During the coalition government, we didn’t allow their agenda to prevail. We didn’t allow them to carry out any anti-people activity. People can criticize me for my steps, I am not BJP, but till the government was there, we didn’t allow their agenda to prevail,” she said.
SRINAGAR: Senior IPS officer, Basant Rath, has hit left, right and centre to justify his joining the far-right BJP. In a write-up, he has attacked the separatists, Kashmir politics and the Congress and termed the Kashmir politicians as “conflict entrepreneurs” “theatre artists of Gupkar” who play “politics of identity capitalism” and politics of “Kashmir exceptionalism”.
Basant Kumar Rath
“I decided to quit the IPS and join BJP because I intend to challenge the political monopoly of the conflict entrepreneurs of Gupkar, Maisuma and Rajouri Kadal and help open up democratic space for our youth,” Rath wrong in a write up in the Outlook. “Because I wish to focus my energy and integrity to do in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh what Abdul Sattar Edhi did to health and education sectors in Pakistan.”
Rath who never went on central deputation and always remained within Jammu and Kashmir sees the erstwhile state as his karambhoomi. An IGP rank officer, he had face-offs with politicians as well as his bosses. More than once, the police registered cases against him.
His write up starts with this paragraph: “Because while hundreds of people lost their lives in Srinagar in a certain year, the then chief minister who did nothing to prevent those deaths, threw tantrums in Gupkar because he couldn’t get his daily quota of Rainbow-brand milk imported from Dubai.”
Another interesting paragraph is: “Because female students can’t help using tardy, overcrowded buses and matadors run by ill-behaved, abusive drivers; and they can’t help facing harassment, humiliation and monetary loot during their daily commute. And the vehicles are owned by businessmen who pay hefty bribes to cabbages masquerading as politicians.”
The write up talks about “dozens of politicians” who siphoned thousands of crores of rupees of taxpayers’ money to finance their business ventures in Bengaluru and Burz Khalifa. Besifdes, it said the politicians have encroached upon meadows in Gulmarg and Ganderbal; and grabbed public land in Bagat Parraypora, Bathindi and Nagrota to build palatial houses for their clan.
Apparently responding to the question Why I Decided To Quit The IPS And Join BJP, the senior IPS write. “Because these theatre artists of Gupkar play politics of identity capitalism to fool the innocent public, steal their votes and loot their hard-earned money. While in power, they preside over the health department that has blood on its hands, the blood of hundreds of toddlers who die in the children hospital in Srinagar in winters. While out of power, these politicians share requests for oxygen cylinders and blood donation on Twitter.” He adds: “Because some tall leaders play condolence politics in Jammu and Kashmir before polling and thank Pakistan after the elections. In public speeches in Sopore and Shopian, they’ll exhort the masses to stay away from polling booths, and to kill and to get killed in the name of Kashmiri exceptionalism; and away from public glare, they’ll use Pakistani money to build palatial houses in Hyderpora and Maisuma.”
Another reason of the poet-cops is: “Because cabbages are bad for the health of the political space in J and K. Because a clean divorce is healthier than a dirty marriage in one’s life.”
It is not known if his resignation has been accepted and if at all he has formally joined the ruling BJP.
SRINAGAR: Reacting to Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on the restoration of statehood in Jammu and Kashmir, JKNC MP Farooq Abdullah on Monday said that they (the government) will give a truncated statehood after elections.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir will come up after assembly polls and that a call on the timing of elections will be taken by the Election Commission.
“I had clearly stated that statehood will be restored in Jammu and Kashmir after elections. Process of preparation of voters’ list is nearing completion in the UT. Now, the Election Commission has to take a call on elections,” Shah, in an exclusive interview with ANI, released on Tuesday, said.
To which Jammu and Kashmir’s former CM said that he thinks they (the government) don’t want to give statehood. “They will give truncated statehood after elections,” he added.
Abdullah also alleged that the motive behind the delimitation exercise, completed in UT, is to turn J-K into a Hindu majority state.
“They think that we are fools, but we are not. We know what their intention is, if this was not their intention, they would not have done delimitation as well, as the way they did. They want that it should be converted into a Hindu-majority state,” he added.
