Pakistan's troops have engaged in unprovoked firing along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in five districts of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting retaliation from the Indian Army. This marks the eighth consecutive night of such incidents, following heightened tensions stemming from a recent terror attack in Pahalgam. Civilians residing along the LoC and IB are preparing their bunkers in anticipation of potential escalation.
The apex court directed members of the bar not to obstruct judicial proceedings in the Kathua gang rape and murder case in Jammu and Kashmir
Amid controversy over the Gulmarg fashion show held during the month of Ramzan, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said his government would have never given permission for such an event in any month of the year.
A suspected Pakistani terrorist and a Central Reserve Police Force jawan were killed following the terrorist attack on the village near the International Border (IB) on Tuesday evening, which also left a civilian injured.
A massive operation is on to flush out the remaining holed-up terrorists.
Seven terrorists have been holed up since Tuesday afternoon.
Conspirator's family expressed doubt about the credibility of the probe by the crime branch of Jammu and Kashmir.
The hostages were reportedly tortured throughout Saturday night before three of them were killed.
Elaborate security arrangements have been made in and around the court and in Kathua in view of the pronouncement of the judgement, officials said Sunday.
The Indian Army has neutralized a terrorist in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir during an encounter with security forces. The Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General M V Suchindra Kumar commended the troops for their swift action and reiterated the army's commitment to keeping the region terror-free.
Some children complained that they were being 'harassed and tortured' at the facility run by a pastor from Kerala.
A soldier of the special forces of the army was killed in an encounter between security forces and terrorists following a search operation in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur district on Thursday, officials said. The firing took place in the Dudu-Basantgarh area during a cordon and search operation that was launched based on information about the presence of terrorists. The deceased soldier has been identified as Havaldar Jhantu Ali Sheikh of 6 Para of the Special Forces. The operation was still underway when the last reports came in from the spot, they added. Four suspects were also picked up for the area for questioning. This is the third encounter between terrorists and security forces in Jammu in the past over 24 hours.
Suspected drones were observed along the International Border in Samba district of Jammu region on Monday, while armed forces downed a 'surveillance drone' in Punjab's Jalandhar district.
Jammu and Kashmir is facing a severe water crisis this year due to a massive rainfall deficit. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has expressed concern about the situation and called for a proactive approach towards water management and conservation. The state has witnessed an 80% deficit in rainfall this year, raising the possibility of drought in the valley this summer. Several water bodies are flowing below the zero level mark, and some springs in south Kashmir have dried up completely. The water level in Jhelum and other major streams is alarmingly low.
The Pakistan Army continued shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) in four sectors of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting a befitting response by the Indian Army, officials said on Thursday. The intensity of cross-border firing was less than Wednesday, when Pakistan Army carried out one of the most intense artillery and mortar shelling in years targeting the forward villages in J-K following missile strikes by India as part of 'Operation Sindoor'.
Five troopers of the Rashtriya Rifles and a special police officer were injured Tuesday night when the terrorists attacked a joint check post in the upper reaches of Chattergalla on the Bhaderwah-Pathankot road in the hilly district.
The casualty comes barely a week after multiple ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the LoC in north Kashmir left 11 people, including five security personnel, dead on November 13.
Five army personnel were killed and six injured on Monday when terrorists ambushed their vehicle in the remote Machedi area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district, officials said.
The apex court, after perusing the report, said it would not 'digress' from the main issue of ensuring a fair trial, not only for the accused but also for the victim's family.
Officials said the polling went off peacefully in all segments including special polling stations along the International Border and Line of Control (LoC) with no untoward incident reported from anywhere.
The Udhampur-based northern command is committed to eliminate the scourge of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, the Army said on Tuesday, as it paid tribute to four soldiers who died in a gunfight with heavily armed terrorists in Doda district.
The girl was allegedly repeatedly assaulted before being killed at a village in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district in January.
Reliance on technical intelligence has not been fruitful as terrorists use online activity to mislead authorities. Officials feel that there is an urgent need for heightened surveillance to counter foreign terrorists, especially in the Jammu region.
'Indian consciousness was raped in Unnao and then in Kathua'
The rape-and-murder of the eight-year-old Bakerwal community girl has created a controversy after lawyers in Jammu called for a shutdown on Wednesday, demanding the case be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
People along the Line of Control and International Border in the Jammu region continue to live under the shadow of death, with unexploded mortar shells fired by Pakistani troops still embedded in farmlands and residential areas even though hostilities have stopped for nearly a week. IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: / Rediff.com Despite the May 10 understanding between India and Pakistan, locals describe the border areas as a 'death trap'. Sixty-two-year-old Balvinder Singh, who returned to his home in Pargwal sector on May 14, recounted a narrow escape. "Two shells exploded in our compound, damaging our house. Three more landed on our farmland. We were terrified and told our family to stay away from the fields until the Army could help," Singh told PTI. Army engineers later came to the village and safely defused the unexploded shells, bringing a temporary sense of relief. "Fear is writ large on the faces of people to these death traps in border hamlets", he said. Scenes of destruction are evident rooftops torn apart, broken houses, windows punctured by shrapnel, and carcasses of cattle lying in pools of blood. The acrid smell of gunpowder still lingers in the air. Sardar Gurmeet Singh faced a similar ordeal. His family could not re-enter their home as a live mortar shell had sunk into the compound in a village close to the International Border. "The army's bomb disposal squad removed it after four days, allowing us to finally enter, back home," he said. Indian Army engineers have launched a sweeping clearance operation across border districts, defusing over 80 unexploded shells in the past five days -- including 6 in Pargwal, 19 in Rajouri, 42 in Poonch, and 12 along the IB. "These shells, mostly 120 mm calibre, have a range of 15 to 30 km and pose a serious threat to both civilian and military targets," an Army officer said. "Many of them were fired by Pakistan during recent hostilities." On May 7, the Indian Army launched Operation Sindoor, conducting precision strikes on nine terror hubs in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people, most of them tourists. The subsequent retaliation by Pakistan pushed the region to the brink of war. From 7 to 10 of May, 27 civilians were killed and over 70 injured in Pakistani shelling in the Jammu region. Farid Din Gujjar, a resident near the border, expressed fear about returning to his fields. "Several shells created deep craters in our paddy land. We cannot resume work until all unexploded ordnance is cleared. It's a death trap," he said. Army units, in coordination with Jammu and Kashmir Police, have evacuated high-risk zones and issued stern warnings to residents not to touch any suspicious objects or unexploded shells. In one major operation, 42 live shells were safely destroyed in the Poonch villages of Jhullas, Salotri, Dharati and Salani. "All safety protocols were followed. The shells posed a serious danger to local lives," an Army spokesperson said, calling the effort a 'continued commitment to protect civilians and restore normalcy'. Poonch saw the vast majority of deaths due to shelling. Security officials said that Pakistan used a mix of mortar shells, armed drones, and missiles during the shelling spree, specifically targeting civilian habitations and border towns in Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, and Poonch. As clearance operations continue, the border residents are slowly returning to their homes, but with caution, fear, and lingering uncertainty about shelling that may yet happen in the future.
Long denied the right to vote, members of the Valmiki community exercised their franchise for the first time in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections on Tuesday and termed it as a "historic moment".
"Give up arms and come for talks or our forces will hunt you down," the home minister said in election rallies in Jammu and Kashmir.
Several newly-wed couples turned up at polling stations in wedding attire to cast their votes in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur constituency which went to polls in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections on Friday.
Delhi high court restrained the media from revealing the identity of the victim by any means.
Senior advocate Indira Jaising said the case should be transferred to Chandigarh due to proximity to Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir and the incidents of obstruction of police personnel by lawyers of the local court.
Gandhi donned a black raincoat over a white T-shirt. The yatra was scheduled to start at 7 am but was delayed by an hour and fifteen minutes apparently due to the inclement weather.
However, a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra refrained from handing over the probe to the CBI and directed that the trial be fast-tracked to ensure there was no delay.
The home minister will also review the preparation for the annual Amarnath pilgrimage set to start on June 29.
'India doesn't belong to these people, it's ours.' 'We need to wake up and save India right now.'
The matter was deliberately hyped, Gupta added. The case is in court, which will decide on it, he said.
The recent terror acts are a sign of our enemy's desperation, he said, in an apparent reference to Pakistan.
According to the chargesheets filed by the crime branch, the abduction, rape and killing of the Bakerwal girl was part of a carefully planned strategy to remove the minority nomadic community from the area.
'We cannot endanger our national security by indulging in false bravado, fake narratives and high-decibel whitewashing. As a nation, we have to collectively fight the scourge of cross-border terrorism'
The local recruitment of terrorists in the Pakistan-sponsored terror groups is also very low as only four locals have joined these groups this year, Army officials told ANI.
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