Authorities have imposed curfew-like-restrictions in parts of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday to scuttle the protests called by separatists on the death anniversary of the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front founder Maqbool Bhat.
Even after SC directions, the administration has not restored mobile internet services for Kashmir division. It said misuse of data services by anti-national elements has the potential to cause large-scale violence and disturb public order.
The ultras fired upon advocate Babar Qadri at his Hawal residence around 6.25 pm from close range before fleeing the spot, a police official said.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police recently arrested five suspected "white-collar jihadis" who were behind a campaign to spread falsehood about the sovereignty of the country.
surveys the scene in Jammu and Kashmir following separatist leader Masarat Alam's release.
Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Friday said that the annual yatra to the Holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir should be restricted to just a month instead of 60 days.
The efforts to forge unity among the various Kashmiri separatist groups received a jolt after hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani rejected the unity move of the moderate, All Parties Hurriyat Conference on Wednesday.
Tailing pro-Pakistani separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani helped the Jammu and Kashmir police in nabbing dreaded Hizbul Mujahideen militant Abdul Aziz Dar alias General Moosa from Srinagar on Saturday.Dar, popularly known as General Moosa among separatists, had been on the run since last year, after he was found actively involved in anti-national agitations. He later allegedly indulged in liaising between Geelani and the Hizbul Mujahideen.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday reviewed the situation prevailing in Jammu and Kashmir, including the security arrangements along the border with Pakistan, officials said.
National Conference leader Mohammed Akbar Lone on Tuesday filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court reiterating his oath as Lok Sabha MP, saying he will preserve and uphold the Constitution and protect the country's territorial integrity, an undertaking that irked the Centre which claimed it added "insult to injury to the nation".
The minority affairs minister ruled out reconsideration on abrogation of Article 370 provisions, saying there was no going back.
J&K CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has issued directions to the state home department to step up investigations and provide secure environment to all civilians.
Leaders of the two factions of the separatist All Parties Hurriyat Conference met in Srinagar on Thursday for the first time after their split in 2003. Mirwaiz Moulvi Omar Farooq, accompanied by another senior separatist leader of his group, visited the uptown Hyderpora residence of Syed Ali Shah Geelani for talks, which continued for over six hours.
Breaking the ice, the Centre's interlocutors on Kashmir talked to Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq over the phone discussing the situation in the state and seeking time for a meeting.
The strike was called to protest the arrest and subsequent booking under Public Safety Act of six of Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani's close associates in Srinagar last week.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Wednesday sacked police constable Tawseef Ahmed Mir, who has been accused of actively working for Hizbul Mujahideen and trying to kill two of his colleagues, and four more employees for alleged links with terror groups.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah said that his government intended to hold the deferred Panchayat elections in the state on non-party basis.
Besides Defence Minister Singh (Lucknow), Minister of Women and Child Development Irani (Amethi), those in the fray are Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishor (Mohanlalganj) and Minister of State of Consumer Affairs Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti (Fatehpur).
Malik said the step will enable good governance, bring self-reliance and employment opportunities to people Jammu and Kashmir and most importantly the feeling of unity and equality with the rest of the country.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the passage of bills as a "momentous occasion" in parliamentary democracy and said a new dawn awaits the people there as they are now free from the "shackles" of vested interest groups.
Days after Jammu and Kashmir high court banned sale of beef, the state government has shunted out Additional Advocate General Vishal Sharma apparently for "failing to defend" its stand on the matter before the court.
Provisions of Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state of J&K, were abrogated by the Centre on August 5 last year.
Police opened fire to disperse an agitated slogan shouting and stone-pelting mob at Nowhatta as youths spilled out of the historic Jamia Mosque after Friday congregational prayers to stage pro-freedom protests, the call for which was given by the separatist coordination committee.
Asif Ali Zardari's remarks that the Kashmir issue should be put on the backburner drew mixed reactions on Monday with the ruling Congress-PDP coalition in Jammu and Kashmir saying it was positive but separatist leaders voiced their dismay. Zardari had said that India and Pakistan should set aside the Ksahmir issue to focus on other key issues.
A partial strike to protest the British knighthood to Indian born writer Salman Rushdie affected normal life in Srinagar on Friday.
Jammu and kashmir Democratic Freedom Party chief Shabir Ahmad Shah was taken into preventive custody along with 20 of his supporters at Munwarabad to prevent him from going to martyrs graveyard.
An independent legislator, Engineer Abdul Rashid on Wednesday said that he will press for the release of all political prisoners and return of the mortal remains of Parliament attack convict, Afzal Guru in the upcoming budget session of the state assembly.
They will be here on an invitation of SAFMA's Indian Chapter.
Home ministry officials told the parliamentary panel that those detained under the PSA can challenge their detention in a designated tribunal.
The Centre will resume the stalled dialogue with separatists in Kashmir at an "appropriate time", Union Home Minister P Chidambaram said today.
Two persons were killed and 40 others including the pro-Independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Yasin Malik wounded in valley wide protests following Friday Prayers.
'We were advocating Indian democracy and Indian Constitution. The other side (separatists) questioned Indian Constitution, democracy and accession. This action of scrapping Article 370 has vindicated their point.'
The Jammu and Kashmir government will constitute a Special Investigation Team of police to probe alleged anti-national activities of Kashmiri separatist Ghulam Nabi Fai and others in the state, which could lead to possible issuance of Red Corner notices against them.
The Centre is considering an economic package for the militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir besides talking to separatist leadership there in a bid to resolve the problems in the state.
The poll process for the second tier of the Panchayati Raj system will be completed by November 5, he said.
Restrictions imposed on people's movement and communication links in the Kashmir Valley are being eased out in a phased manner and the normal situation in the Jammu division has been restored after assessment by relevant local authorities.
