Election department employees stage protest amid strike for fulfilling their demands 

Rehan Showkat

Srinagar, Jan 30 : Employees of Election Department under the banner of Jammu and Kashmir Field Association on Wednesday went on two days strike against rejecting of their proposal which they had submitted to the government last year.

“The protest was also staged in August last year, and at that time government promised to redress our genuine demands.  And our department presented a proposal regarding the redressal of our genuine demands to the government. The proposal has been rejected by the finance department on Tuesday which forced us to hit roads again,” they said as they staged a protest march from Old Secretariat to Press Enclave here.

“We took to streets due to indifferent approach of government,” Showkat Ahmad Dar, a protester said, adding that they have announced two days strike beginning from today to “wake up” the government to meet their demands “already accepted by the government last year.”

The genuine demands, the protesters said,  include the creation of tehsildar posts at the district level as directed by election commission of India, remove anomalies in their pay /salaries and put it at par with the revenue department or at par with clerical staff or at least similar to that of Election Employees in all other states of India. 

They also demanded constitution of DPCs and consider due promotions of the election Assistants (Junior and senior scale),  reservation of Dy DEO posts, separate election commission and revoking of the 2015 downgrading of the sanctioned posts of senior election assistants and restore the same to actual original sanctioned strength(87 posts) in J&K.

“And one more important demand is regarding Electoral Roll Management (ERM) operator who have been ousted without serving any legal notice. The operators have a great contribution and we demand they should not be ousted at all and the government should recognize their services,” they said. (GNS)

Srinagar, Jan 30:  Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Wednesday asked the Government of India (GoI) as to why a phone call to him by Pakistan’s foreign minister has irked it saying Pakistan is a party to (Kashmir) dispute.

“What are they (GoI) objecting to?” Mirwaiz said while addressing the amalgam’s delegates session at Rajbagh headquarters here.

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi spoke with Mirwaiz Umar Farooq over phone, and according to a statement issued by the Pakistani Foreign Office, the two “spoke on the issue of Kashmir where Qureshi said that his government was trying to highlight the ‘human rights violations’ being perpetrated by India”.

“Should the world not know of it?” Mirwaiz said. “If India cares so much about its image let them walk their talk of being a democracy and resolve the dispute democratically through talks and hold the promised referendum.”

He said Pakistan is “highlighting the daily misery of Kashmiris whose every right including the right to live is subject to the whim of an ordinary soldier on the ground who can shoot at will under legal cover and get away with it or worse be rewarded for it”.

Mirwaiz said while on one hand, the GoI talks about ‘Kashmiriyat, Insaniyat, and Jhamoriyat’ but on the ground, the fact is that they have “unleashed worst ever policy of repression” under the garb of CASO wherein every day our youth are being killed mercilessly.

Hurriyat (M) chairman said that New Delhi’s “stubborn approach” was the biggest hurdle in Kashmir resolution.

“Though the former prime minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee had talked about dealing with Kashmir within the ambit of Insaniyat with all parties on board but the current Indian PM Narendra Modi has only followed an iron fist military approach to suppress the voice of the people of Kashmir,” Mirwaiz said adding that “the people are facing tremendous hardships and it is need of the hour to forge unity on all fronts”.

He said “the people of Kashmir are offering priceless sacrifices for a sacred cause and there is a long list of sacrifices that will go in the great history of Kashmir struggle”.

“Kashmir struggle is not for any economic package or chair or for any monetary benefits but purely for the right to self-determination. A series of steps are being employed to weaken the struggle and the example is before us that our educated youth are being pushed to wall and left with no option other than to pick up arms and resistance leadership caged and even not allowed to mourn the deaths of our youth, our orchards damaged, houses blown up and resistance leaders caged and booked under PSA,” he said.

“Legal ploys are also being put to use to change the disputed nature of Kashmir while as military might is used to muzzle the genuine dissent,” Mirwaiz said. 

Parts of Kashmir Valley receive light snowfall

Srinagar, Jan 30 : Parts of Kashmir Valley received light snowfall on Wednesday even as local meteorological department predicted wet weather across Jammu and Kashmir, cautioning that it may disrupt transport on Srinagar-Jammu highway, the only surface link connecting Valley with the rest of the world.

According to a Meteorological Department official, there was very light snowfall at Srinagar (0.8mm) Pahalgam (4.0mm) while Kupwara and Kokernag received 2mm while Gulmarg had 3.2mm of snow from 0830 hours to 1730 hours.

“We expect light to moderate snowfall from today (evening) at most places of Jammu and Kashmir and some places of Ladakh with the peak on January 31,” Director MeT Sonam Lotus said.

He said that rains and snow may affect Srinagar -Jammu highway especially Banihal -Ramban axis tonight and tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the mercury rose in Kashmir last night with Srinagar, the summer capital of the state, recording a low of minus 0.3 degrees Celsius against minus 5.4 degrees Celsius on the previous night.

Pahalgam, which serves as base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra in south Kashmir, witnessed increase by nearly 10 degrees as mercury settled at minus 3.3 degrees Celsius.

The MeT official said Qazigund the gateway town to the valley in south Kashmir recorded a low of minus 2.0 degrees Celsius against 7.8 degrees Celsius on previous night while the nearby Kokernag town registered a low of minus 3.4 degrees Celsius against 7.3 degrees Celsius on previous night.

The ski-resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded the minimum temperature of minus 7.5 against 12. 2 degrees Celsius on previous while Kupwara in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 2.5 against minus 7.8 degrees Celsius, he said.

Kashmir is currently under the grip of ‘Chillai-Kalan’ the 40-day harshest period of winter when the chances of snowfall are most frequent and maximum and the temperature drops considerably.

‘Chillai-Kalan’ ends today but the cold wave continues even after that in Kashmir.

The 40-day period is followed by a 20-day long ‘Chillai-Khurd’ (small cold) and a 10-day long ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold). (GNS)

KD NEWS SERVICE

JAMMU, Jan 30: To encourage students of Government schools to perform better than their counterparts in private schools, the School Education Department today granted Rs 50 lakh as award money to felicitate around 400 students for meritorious performance in J&K State Board of School Education exams for class 12 and class 10.

The award money of Rs 15000 will be given to 99   class  12 pass out students of Kashmir division and Rs 10000 to 100 students of class 10.

Similarly, the award money of Rs 15000 will be given to 100 pass outs of class 12 and Rs 10000 to 98 pass out students of class 10 of Jammu division. The award money will be given through direct benefit transfer mode. 

Meanwhile, the School Education Department also granted scholarship of Rs 3.5 lakh in favour of 12 cadets of Jammu & Kashmir presently undergoing training at Rashtriya Indian Military College Dehradun.

KD NEWS SERVICE

SRINAGAR, Jan 30: Hurriyat Conference (M) Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Wednesday asked Government of India (GOI) as to why it got irked over a phone call to him by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister?

Mirwaiz said that Kashmir struggle is not for any economic package or chair or for any monetary benefits but purely for the ‘right to self determination’.

“A series of steps are being employed to weaken the struggle and the example is before us that our educated youth are being pushed to wall and left with no option other than to pick up arms and resistance leadership caged and even not allowed to mourn the deaths of our youth, our orchards damaged, houses blown up and resistance leaders caged and booked under PSA,” Mirwaiz said in a press briefing.

He said that legal ploys are also being put to use to change the disputed nature of Kashmir while as military might is used to muzzle the genuine dissent.

Mirwaiz asked government of India as to why a phone call to him by Pakistan foreign minister has irked it while the fact remains that Pakistan is a party to dispute.”What are they (GoI) objecting to?

He said that is it because Pakistan highlights miseries of Kashmiri’s whose all rights including the right to live is subjected to whims of a soldier on ground ‘who can shoot at will under legal cover and get away with it ,or worse be rewarded for it!’

“Should the world not know of it? If India cares so much about its image let them walk their talk of being a democracy and resolve the dispute democratically through talks and hold the promised referendum,” Mirwaiz said.

He said while on one hand GOI talks about Kashmiriyat, Insaniyat, and Jhamoriyat but on ground the fact it that they have unleashed worst ever policy of repression under the garb of CASO wherein everyday our youth are being killed mercilessly.

Mirwaiz said that New Delhi’s stubborn approach was the biggest hurdle in Kashmir resolution though former prime minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee had talked about dealing with Kashmir within the ambit of Insaniyat with all parties on board but the current PM Narinder Modi has only followed an iron fist military approach to suppress the voice of the people of Kashmir.

He said that people are facing tremendous hardships and it is need of the hour to forge unity on all fronts.

Meanwhile, a key constituent of Hurriyat Conference (M), the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Independent Movement headed by Bilal Lone, held its maiden delegates session at the amalgams party headquarters Rajbagh, Srinagar.

Delegates from almost all the districts of Kashmir participated in the session that was presided over by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq while as Prof Abdul Gani Bhat and Bilal Lone were also present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Bilal Lone said that his priority was to carry forward the mission of his father shaheed-e-Hurriyat Abdul Gani Lone which pursued throughout his life till the last minute of his martyrdom.

He said that the previous name of his party Peoples Conference had resulted in confusion among the ranks and files of party and that he decided to change the name of his party.

After consultations with my party workers, zeroed in on the name — JK Peoples Independent Movement, he said.

He said the party under its new name will strengthen the APHC and the hands of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on all fronts. Expressing full faith in the Hurriyat Conference and its leadership, Bilal Lone said to change the name of his party was taken after taking workers into confidence.

He said his affiliation and attachment with the freedom movement of Kashmir was his father’s legacy and he and his workers will remain steadfast towards the movement as people of Kashmir have offered their priceless sacrifices for the pious goal of right to self determination. To support APHC on all fronts and to protect the mission of martyrs is my ultimate goal.

Bilal Lone said that Kashmir issue has to be resolved by India and Pakistan bit not without the active participation of people of Kashmir. He urged his party activists to act as the representatives of APHC in their respective districts and to remain steadfast and committed towards the Kashmir cause.

In his address, Prof Abdul Gani Bhat said that Kashmiri people are sacrificing their today for a better tomorrow and time is not far when the dawn of freedom will rise and enlighten entire region.

He said the Hurriyat was representing a great thought and ideology and Kashmiris aren’t worried for themselves only but others also. He said war between India and Pakistan wasn’t possible and time is not far when both nations will have to resolve the vexed Kashmir dispute.