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J&K’s ‘Battle Royale’ to be fought in Anantnag-Rajouri LS seat

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Srinagar, March 18 (IANS) As the battlelines start becoming clear in the five Lok Sabha seats in J&K, the most interesting to watch is going to be the south Kashmir Anantnag-Rajouri constituency.

This is the only Lok Sabha constituency in J&K that is spread over both the Jammu division and Kashmir with the most diverse mix of communities and voter affinities.

The constituency includes the two districts of Kashmir, including Anantnag and Kulgam, and two districts in Jammu division, including Rajouri and Poonch. The voter mix is as diverse as the topography of the constituency.

Spread over the plains of Anantnag district known as the rice bowl of Kashmir to the limits of the Valley’s mountains in Pahalgam hill station, Kokernag, mountainous terrain of Kulgam and the rugged, tough and challenging borderlines of Poonch and Rajouri districts, the constituency is running close to the Line of Control (LoC).

The constituency has a varied class of voters, including the Kashmiri speaking Muslims of Anantnag and Kulgam with influential Gujjari speaking Muslims of Pahalgam, higher reaches of Kokernag right up to Daksum and the foothills of Kulgam district.

The two districts of Rajouri and Poonch with a very large number of Gujjar and Pahari communities will finally decide the winner and loser in this constituency.

The reach and popularity of the fighting candidates is undoubtedly not going to be universal in this varied mixture of voters and communities.

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There is hardly a single leader of any political party that can safely be picked up as the winner in this constituency despite the influence of the National Conference (NC), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Congress and the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) headed by Ghulam Nabi Azad.

Each of these parties has an appreciable presence in this constituency, but none with such a presence that would make victory a foregone conclusion.

It is under this background that the NC has decided to put forth its most powerful Gujjar/Bakarwal leader, Mian Altaf Ahmed into the arena.

Mian Altaf Ahmed is not just the political leader of the Gujjar/Bakarwal communities in the four districts of this constituency, he is also the most respected religious leader of this community.

For the last four generations, spread over Mian Altaf’s great grandfather down to his father, late Mian Bashir Ahmad, reverently called the ‘Baba Sahib’ (The great father), Mian Altaf sits on a legacy of lethal power against his opponents. Each year on the annual Urs at his ancestral seat in Wangat village of north Kashmir Ganderbal district, thousands of Gujjars/Bakarwals from every nook and corner of Poonch and Rajouri districts and other parts of the UT converge to pay obeisance at the shrine.

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The ‘Nazrana’ (Devotional offerings) offered at the Wangat shrine includes cash, cattle, sheep and goats whose value runs into crores of Rupees each year. The devotees come to the ‘Peer’ every year at Wangat.

Very cleverly, the NC has decided to send Mount to Moses by fielding Mian Altaf Ahmed. Instead of Moses coming to the Mount as do the Gujjars/Bakarwals in thousands each year to Wangat shrine. The party is definite to announce Mian Altaf’s candidature for the constituency any time soon.

Sources close to Mian Altaf told IANS that his consent has already been sought and after the request was made to him by both Dr. Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, the Mian had no option other than consent.

With the NC fielding Mian Altaf Ahmed, the BJP is now seriously considering the choice of his opponent. One big advantage the BJP has in Poonch and Rajouri districts is the recent announcement of ST status for the Pahari community.

Statistics show that the Pahari community has over three lakh voters in these two districts. The Paharis are committed to vote for the BJP as their 70-year long demand was fulfilled by the BJP government at the centre.

Among Gujjars and Hindus living in these two districts of Poonch and Rajouri, the BJP also has supporters whose votes would definitely favour the BJP candidate.

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Given the fact that any reconciliation between the NC and the PDP is now out of the question, Kashmiri speaking Muslim voters in Anantnag and Kulgam would surely cut into each other in this constituency as the PDP is likely fielding a powerful candidate to avenge its disgrace by the NC.

The NC dumped the PAGD without even asking the PDP chief, Mehbooba Mufti. Sources close to her indicate that despite maintaining a low outward resistance, Mehbooba Mufti will not take the left-handed compliment of NC sitting down.

Ghulam Nabi Azad does not have any formidable presence in this constituency, but together with the Congress, Azad can play the spoilsport for the PDP and the NC.

Given these permutations and combinations, much will now depend on who the BJP chooses to field in this constituency.

The ‘Battle Royale’ is decidedly going to be between NC’s Mian Altaf Ahmad and the BJP.

With the scale heavily loaded in favour of the senior Gujjar/Bakarwal leader, the BJP will have to field a formidable stalwart to take the legal mixture of politics and religion represented by the Mian head on.

In a nutshell, the most interesting electoral battle in J&K is going to be fought in the south Kashmir Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha constituency.

–IANS

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BJP ran away from debate in MP Assembly, says Jitu Patwari

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Bhopal, July 6 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh Congress Chief Jitu Patwari on Saturday accused Chief Minister Mohan Yadav-led BJP government of running away from the debate in the Assembly.

He claimed that the Assembly was adjourned sine die nine days before its schedule because the Congress legislators raised public issues in the House.

The monsoon session of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly that had begun in July, was adjourned sine die on July 5, while the session was scheduled to run till July 14.

“The BJP adjourned the House hurriedly because the Congress exposed their failure. Even the BJP MLAs were questioned over Nal Jal Yojana, which is why the Assembly was adjourned before its scheduled time,” Patwari said during a press conference.

He also claimed that the BJP government did not reply to 64 per cent of the questions asked during the monsoon session.

“Congress and BJP MLAs have asked a total of 4,270 questions, of which 2,756 went unanswered,” Patwari said.

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Meanwhile, the State Congress Chief targeted Chief Minister Yadav over unemployment and the law and order situation in the state.

–IANS

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Kerala HC asks Railways to manage waste on tracks

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Kochi, July 6 (IANS) The Kerala High Court has slammed Indian Railways for the waste found besides tracks and directed it to ensure proper disposal of garbage.

A Division Bench of the High Court made these observations while hearing the case that was registered by it suo motu after a fire broke out at Brahmapuram, near here and also dealing with the management of gypsum generated by Fertilizers & Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT).

The court observed that Railways has a duty to prevent the disposal of waste on tracks.

It said that while the waste generated near the railway stations was managed, not much was being done to remove garbage from the side of the tracks.

The court said the main reason for this dumping was that train compartments do not have adequate garbage bins.

It further pointed out that the waste disposed on the tracks flows into water bodies causing damage to the environment.

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The court, looking into the two cases, directed Indian Railways to file an affidavit detailing the steps taken to clear the plastic waste from tracks.

On the second issue, the court expressed whether the gypsum generated could be used in road construction and asked FACT and the National Highway Authority of India to explore the possibility.

The court posted the case for further hearing on July 26.

–IANS

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Bolpur tragedy: Two persons arrested, extra-marital affair emerges

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Kolkata, July 6 (IANS) The police have arrested two persons, including a woman, in connection with the carnage at Bolpur in West Bengal’s Birbhum district which killed three members of the same family.

The woman who has been arrested in this connection is Smirti Bibi, who is the wife of Sheikh Ratan, the younger brother of Sheikh Tuta, 40, who was killed in the carnage.

Besides, Sheikh Tuta, his wife Rumpa Bibi, 30, and son Ayan Sheikh, 94, were also killed in the carnage.

Sheikh Safiqul, a quack residing in an adjacent village, with whom Smirti Bibi allegedly had an extra-marital affair, had also been arrested in connection with the incident.

Based on the complaint lodged by other members of the family, there were often quarrels in the family over an alleged extra-marital affair.

The family members as well as the neighbours of the family have informed the police that since Sheikh Tuta was vocal against this extra-marital affair, both Smirti Bibi and her paramour had developed a grudge over the deceased person.

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On early Friday morning, the room where the three deceased individuals were sleeping was set on fire.

While Rumpa Bibi and Ayan Sheikh died on Friday only after they were brought to the hospital, Sheikh Tuta died early Saturday morning.

The local police have started an investigation into the matter.

Sources said that based on statements of different persons as well as some circumstantial evidence, the two persons were arrested on Saturday.

–IANS

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Rowdy elements should be afraid of the police, says K’taka CM

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Bengaluru, June 6 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Saturday that rowdy elements should be afraid of the police, adding that it is a shame that some policemen do not even know that the e-beat system is in place.

“Why are you given guns? Why are rowdies not afraid of it,” Siddaramaiah questioned the state police while speaking after the inauguration of the 2024 Senior Police Officers Conference at the police headquarters here.

He also released a new software on the occasion.

“Who are the drug dealers? The respective station officials know who the rowdies and real estate agents are.” He asked why it was not stopping.

He congratulated Home Minister G. Parameshwara and the Karnataka Police for maintaining law and order without communal riots in the state in the last one year.

The CM gave a clear instruction that it is mandatory for every SP-DCP-IG to visit and inspect every station in their jurisdiction as per the police manual.

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–IANS

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PM Modi congratulates Iran's new President Pezeshkian

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New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday congratulated Masoud Pezeshkian for his election as Iran’s new President.

“Looking forward to working closely with you to further strengthen our warm and long-standing bilateral relationship for the benefit of our people and the region,” PM Modi said in a post on X.

India-Iran partnership in various sectors, including connectivity, has expanded tremendously in recent times, especially during the tenure of Iran’s late President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi who passed away in a helicopter crash in May this year.

India had also observed a day’s state mourning as a mark of respect to the late Iranian President and other eight people, including the country’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who lost their lives in the tragic accident.

It was also under India’s presidency that Iran joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

Both countries have fast-tracked infrastructure cooperation, focusing especially on the Chabahar project and the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) – the 7,200 km-long multimodal trade corridor linking Russia with India via the ports of Iran.

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–IANS

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