Senior Peoples Democratic Party leader Qazi Mohammad Afzal, who was stripped of the Forest portfolio after rumours of corruption, submitted his resignation on Tuesday.
This is chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad's first stern action against a ministerial colleague, since he declared a war against corruption in public life in the state.
Dr Singh, who arrived at Jammu airport by a special plane from New Delhi on Friday afternoon, flew in a helicopter to the Chenab bridge site, about 27-km from Jammu, and dedicated it to the nation. Governor Lt. Gen. (retd) S K Sinha, Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Hussain Baig and former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed were among others who received the prime minister at the airport and also accompanied him to the bridge site.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad's war against corruption has triggered up a regional debate even though the menace is still far from being eradicated from public life.
A new Congress leader may make an electoral impact by his very presence. Congress voters who had moved away from the party, after being influenced by the BJP's 'family rule' campaign, can now return with a certain moral satisfaction, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Hindu pilgrims from Pakistan called on Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in Jammu on Wednesday, after completing their pilgrimage to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.The chief minister said that he would like to see pilgrims from Pakistan visiting the Amarnath shrine in Kashmir also. "The peace process initiated by the two countries had resulted in closing the mouths of guns and mortars on the border and opening of up a new phase of friendship," Azad said.
"The headmen have to act as the eyes and ears of the administration and help the government in carrying forward its developmental agenda," Azad said.
With no agenda announced for the meeting, the leaders from Jammu and Kashmir said they have come with an open mind.
Both Jehangir and Azad stressed the importance of the resumption of the India-Pakistan peace process and confidence-building measures, which had slowed down due to the internal situation in Pakistan. The two also discussed the post-election scenario in Pakistan and the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
About 450 athletes from 18 teams including from ten states would contest for the honours at the five-day event.
Conservative estimates put the money spent annually on this exercise at Rs 10 crore as cost of transportation and other allowances for the employees working in the civil secretariat.
Former chief minister Dr Farooq Abdullah sought to play down the demand by saying that it was a populist comment made by a small-time politician.
A high level meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on Wednesday discussed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
Azad said the "discussion of election strategy was the main purpose."
All residents of Padshahibagh in Srinagar have been shifted to safer places as the river crossed the danger mark at around 11 pm on Tuesday night at Zarikanl-Gandbal.
Congress jolted by SP move in Uttar Pradesh.
Governor N N Vohra issued a proclamation on Thursday evening, in exercise of powers conferred by Section 92 of the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, and assumed, 'with immediate effect all the functions of the government of the state and all powers vested in or exercisable by anybody or authority in the state, other than the powers vested in or exercisable by the high court'.
In the wake of repeated faults in planes carrying Haj pilgrims from Srinagar, the Union home ministry on Monday summoned civil aviation officials following a strong protest by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.
A resident of Gurdaspur area of Punjab, Singh had a tiff with the mess commander on January 8, 2001 and opened fire killing his platoon commander and a constable.
Ruling coalition partner People's Democratic Party on Sunday sought a special Cabinet meeting to discuss demilitarisation and withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act.
After facing stiff opposition from senior Congress leaders from Jammu,BR Kundal, the former chief secretary of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday finally made it to the cabinet headed by Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Mufti sent a communication to the chief minister asking him to withdraw the security provided to him.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has taken a dig at the media for highlighting trivial issues in their race for news and ignoring developmental issues in the state.
Speaking in the Assembly in the backdrop of last week's unearthing of fake encounter killings, Azad said that with his takeover, human rights violations began to decrease.
The Bill seeks to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan escaping religious persecution there.
Commissioning the FM and satellite uplink station, Azad called for further improvement to cover the shadow areas in the region where television and radio signals were not received due to geographical constraints. He said that radio was an effective medium of communication and the inauguration of FM station was a boon for the young generation as it was a craze with the youth all over the country.
"It does worry me. These trends are the outcome of unfortunate things happened in July and August. The question is that secularism is getting shrunk at the cost of development," Azad said, adding that it should be 'a worry for each and every Indian'.
Kashmir's Grand Mufti Mufti Bashir-ud-Din, Saturday asked Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad to undertake penance for his recent utterances asking people to adopt Gandhian philosophy for worldly success. In an edict (Fatwa) issued by him, the Grand Mufti said that in case "he does not undergo penance for his utterance, his act would be considered as anti-Islam."
Azad has been making clear that the proposals needed to be discussed thoroughly and there should be synchronisation between public posturing and the stand taken at the negotiating table.
Qazi had submitted his resignation on Tuesday after he was stripped of forest portfolio on Sunday.
The opposition leaders met Naidu on Wednesday morning, when Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad broached the issue and referred to the rules and conventions of the House, the sources said.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, who was on the flight, ordered the marshal's arrest
General Bipin Rawat, his wife and 11 others were killed in a helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, the Indian Air Force said.
The Hajjis were carried in luxury buses owned by the State Road Transport Corporation from the Tourist Reception Centre.
The newly elected Congress legislators, who are staying at a resort on the city outskirts, also joined the protest.
The eight members -- distributed among the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party -- were suspended earlier in the day for the remainder of the Monsoon Session over their 'unruly behaviour' during the passage of farm Bills in the Upper House of Parliament.
"I am optimistic of some tangible movement forward on these crucial issues in the coming days," Mufti told PDP functionaries in Srinagar.
Addressing the two-day summer session of the state legislature, Azad quoted extensively from figures to prove that stern action had been taken against those found guilty of rights abuses among the security personnel.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad claimed that custodial deaths and disappearances in the state have been at its lowest during the past one year.
It is for the first time in the history of Independent India that not a single Muslim is part of the Union Cabinet.
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