KD NEWS SERVICE

SRINAGAR, Apr 24: HR Construction Corporation founder Haji Ghulam Hassan Mir is no more. He breathed his last early Wednesday morning, family sources said.

Mir was not well for some time and spent a few months in Delhi in the past winter in meeting doctors. He flew home recently and was restricted to the home. He breathed his last this morning.

Mir was heading a group of companies that includes HK Cements, HK Nissan in addition to the HRCC. Mir’s funeral prayers are scheduled to take place at 9:30 am at Jinazagah, Mir Mohalla, Near Mir Masjid, Athwajan, Srinagar.

Meanwhile, Syed Basharat, Editor in Chief of The Kashmir Despatch has expressed his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and prayed for eternal peace to the departed soul. He has also expressed solidarity with the Mir family, their friends and acquaintances in this difficult time of grief.   

Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti Wednesday said that the next government in Jammu and Kashmir will not be formed without Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Addressing party workers convention at Circuit House in Shopian, Mehbooba claimed that PDP took a lead against their opponents in the first phase of polling for Anantnag parliamentary constituency.

The first part of three-phased Lok Sabha election in Anantnag was held on Tuesday with the district recording 13.63 per cent voter turnout.

The PDP chief said she desired to visit Shopian in past but was advised by party workers to delay the visit.

In her address, Mehbooba said PDP was fighting the elections for protection of article 35-A in the Indian Constirution.

She castigated state Congress, saying they were talking about safeguarding of Article 370 but it was Ghulam Nabi Azad as chief Minister of the State, who transferred thousands of Kannals of land to Amarnath Shrine board.

Inputs from RK

Srinagar: The intermittent rains continued to lash Valley since Tuesday evening, bringing the temperature down in Kashmir.

However, the local meteorological department here predicted improvement in weather conditions from Thursday evening.

The rains began on Tuesday evening and continued intermittently till this evening. The rains in the Valley led to dip in the temperature.

Deputy Director MeT, Mukhtar Ahmad said that the weather conditions in Kashmir would improve from Thursday evening.

He said the light rainfall would continue intermittently till Thursday evening following which there will be improvement in the weather.

Ahmad said that in plains the weather would improve from Thursday afternoon while in higher reaches it will start improving from evening.

Meanwhile, an official in Meteorological department informed that Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of 12.0 degrees Celsius last night against 8.9 degrees Celsius normal for this time of the season.

The summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir received 3.9 mm of rain since overnight till 8:30 hours, he said.

The official said that Qazigund, the gateway town of Kashmir, recorded a low of 10.8 degrees Celsius and had a rainfall of 6.8 mm while the mercury in Kokernag town in south Kashmir settled at a low of 9.2 degrees Celsius and it had 8.6 mm of rains during the time. (KNS)

Srinagar, Apr 24 : Praising the steadfastness of people of Kashmir, in the way of the ongoing freedom struggle, Jammu Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP) has said that determination of the Kashmiri nation has produced determined leaders like Shabir Shah who are the victims of political vendetta at the hands of New Delhi.

In a statement issued , JKDFP spokesperson said that people of Kashmir have time and again exhibited that oppression, suppression and tyranny cannot kill their political sentiment. India is using its military and political force blindly to silence the people of Kashmir but whenever common people get any chance of showing their anger against New Delhi, they do not waste it.

JKDFP again condemned the state level atrocities on Kashmiri people and said that day is not far when New Delhi has to release all the political prisoners of Kashmir, accept the ground realities of the disputed region and its historical facts that ultimately will lead to a resolution to the long pending Kashmir dispute.

Srinagar: Parimpora Fruit Mandi Association Wednesday decided to stop trade from April 29 accusing government of blocking trade of perishable items by stopping the trucks to and fro Kashmir.

The traders on Wednesday held a presser in Parimpora.

President of the association Bashir Ahmad Bashir said that since three months government has been blocking the trucks for unexplained reasons and putting trucks to halt for days together.

“They know it well that fruits or vegetables are highly perishable items and can’t remain intact for days together. After two days of halt on road we have to throw them away,” Bashir said. Bashir accused government of deliberately hitting the trade creating an economic blockade of the valley.

“Traffic is already one way and then restrictions on the highway adding to it from past three months trucks are being made to halt and not allowed to move towards valley or to move from valley,” he said. He claimed that they already had talked to Divisional commissioner Kashmir and Jammu, to Horticulture departmment and to both SSP’s of traffic in Jammu and Srinagar but no one took any action.

“Fruits and vegetables are part of the mainstay of economy,” he said. Bashir said that since government is unmoved by their plight they have decided to stop the trade from April 29. “Ramadan is nearer, Ladakh road has been opened but people will suffer as their will not be enough vegetable supplies and no fruits in market. May be that will make the government act,” he said.(KNO)

Sopore, April 24 : Police arrested a 40-year-old man at Sopore in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district for allegedly raping a young girl.

Fayaz Ahmed Shikara son of Gh Ahmed Shikara Maharajpora Sopore , who as per police allegedly raped a minor girl in Sopor town.

A senior police official told Kashmir Despatch based on a complaint that a 40 year old man took minor girl to a lonely place where he raped her.

Officer said that Family members of the girl came to know about the sexual assault only when she fell ill and unconscious after reached back home.

The officer added soon after the complaint the accused was arrested and in this regard a case FIR number FIR Number 107/2019 U/S 363/376 RPC has been registered and further investigation has been taken up.