Strategic highway reopened in Kashmir

          Srinagar: The Indian Army on Friday reopened a strategic highway in Jammu and Kashmir. The treacherous 220-km long Srinagar-Kargil highway, most parts of which remain snowbound for six months, was opened for vehicular traffic after a month-long delay as the Army undertook widening and up- gradation of the road. Major General Satyavir Yadav, General Officer Commanding of an Army division, said the road was of termendous importance to the people of Kargil. "Life in the cold and remote areas is very difficult, so such roads are like bridges, very important for the people. This road forms the lifeline of people of entire Kargil and Leh region. With the opening of this road, the people will be able to fulfil their chores," said Yadav. The Srinagar-Leh highway is of crucial importance because it is used to ferry supplies to Indian soldiers in the strategic heights of Kargil. Besides, it is the only road communication linking the snow-clad region of Leh and Ladakh with the rest of the country. The highway is also of strategic importance as the Indian army moves a bulk of supplies across to troops locked on the remote Siachen glacier. In a 42-km long stretch of the road, there are over 60 major avalanche sites, which pose major risk for the clearance team. The Army has been rebuilding and concentrating on this highway after intrusion by Muslim guerrillas from Pakistan in 1999. More than 500 soldiers died as the army drove them out from icy mountain tops.

Cops accused in Gujarat riots gang rape surrender (Go To Top)

          Ahmedabad: The two policemen accused in the gang rape of a Muslim woman and murder of 24 of her family members during the religious violence in Gujarat in 2002, surrendered before a local court here Friday. The court in Ahmedabad remanded Ramsinh Bhabhor and R.S. Bhagora, the top police officials, till May 18. With this all the 20 accused in the case have been remanded to judicial custody. Bilkis Bano, a key witness in the gang rape case, had alleged that a mob of 500 people had attacked them and at least three women including her sister, were gangraped on March 3, 2002. Bano and her husband Yakoob Patel were the only survivors in the family of 24, the rest were burnt alive. The apex court had handed over the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Bhabhor, however, said they conducted their duty well during the riots. "We have investigated the riot case correctly and impartially. As it is a murder case, the Central Bureau of Investigation is looking into it again," said Bhabhor. Both Bhabhor and Bhagora were accused of "shoddy" investigation in the case. They were charged of entering into a criminal conspiracy with four other policemen to dispose off the bodies of seven riot victims by adding salt to speed up the decomposition. The High Court had earlier rejected the duo's petition seeking quashing of CBI proceedings against them. More than 1000 people, mostly Muslims, had died in revenge killings after 59 Hindus were burnt to death in a train by a Muslim mob.

Kashmir separatists hope talks to continue (Go To Top)

          Srinagar: Kashmiri separatists said on Friday that they hoped that the ongoing peace process with India over the Kashmir issue would continue despite the change of government in New Delhi. Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, and a moderate group of Kashmir's separatist alliance, the All-Party Hurriyat Conference, started a dialogue in January, the first between two sides since a revolt against Indian rule erupted in 1989. "We are hopeful that the talks which Atalji started with the Hurriyat will not be hindered but will move forward. As talks are the main aim of Hurriyat and we feel that anything can be solved through dialogue. This is what we conveyed to the outgoing government. They invited us for talks, we went and to some extent we wanted to move ahead for which the ground was being prepared. There was one meeting fixed for June, the date of which was not fixed. But I hope that the new government will not end the talk process," Hurriyat Chairman Moulana Abbas Ansari said.

          Congress, its allies and the Communists, who have pledged support to it, seem set to form a government as they have parliament, comfortably more than the half-line mark required to rule. The party, which swept the BJP-led NDA from power, says that it fully supports dialogue with Pakistan to end decades of hostility with India's nuclear neighbour Pakistan. "With the change of leadership there is no change in policy of governments. The policy which Atalji (the outgoing Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee) started for solving the Kashmir problem, talks with Pakistan and other internal issues, all these will not change. The reason is that when Atalji called for talks, went to Pakistan, spoke to President Musharraf, then Congress had declared its full support to the government," Mushtaq Ahmed, editor of daily Srinagar News, said. Ordinary Kashmiris also said they wanted the new dispensation to take forward the process of dialogue. "If Congress does some work also in addition to what the BJP has done then we are hopeful that it will be moving forward. And she (main opposition Congress party president Sonia Gandhi) has also said that they will try to carry forward the peace process," Shabbir Hussain, a local, said. Hurriyat, which groups about two dozen political and religious groups, has been considerably weakened since a hardline faction backed by militant groups opposing talks with New Delhi walked out last year.

Talks on Muzaffarabad-Srinagar bus service (Go To Top)

          Islamabad: India and Pakistan will initiate talks on Muzaffarabad-Srinagar bus service and the opening of the Khokrapar-Monabao route could begin next month, the Daily Times quoted the PTDC (Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation) Managing Director Malik Habib Khan as saying here Thursday. He further said that since the Pakistan government had announced this year as a K-2 Year, all such programmes would be held from July 10 to 14. The government will hold a seminar in Islamabad and arrange a four-day tour of the country for foreign tourists, 50 of whom will be from countries other than India, the MD added.

US private had sex with guards while stripped Iraqis watched (Go To Top)

          London: The US has not even come out of the shock of the pictures showing abuse of Iraqi prisoners and a new sexual scandal in one of the prisons has surfaced. A shocking footage seized by military investigators shows Lynndie England, a female soldier at the centre of the Iraqi abuse scandal, having sex with fellow guards in front of the inmates. According to The Sun, the film shows Private England naked and eagerly engaging in romps with other soldiers while stripped Iraqi inmates were forced to watch the depraved sex shows. The explicit videos and images, claims the report, have shattered Lynndie's claims of innocence. She had earlier protested that she was following orders and was being forced to pose naked by the interrogators. Lynndie will now face a court-martial on charges of assault and battery and conspiracy to maltreat prisoners.