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Kashmir: State Govt. wants to deport 29 foreign militants

	November 20, 2006

A day after India and Pakistan decided to set up a joint anti-terror mechanism headed by their Additional Secretaries, the Jammu and Kashmir Government has sought to deport 29 foreign militants, including those from Pakistan and Afghanistan who have completed their prison terms in the State. The state police talked to the Union Home Ministry officials on Nov. 16 and requested that the matter be taken up with Pakistan for deportation of some of the militants. There are in all 125 foreign militants against whom cases have been registered in the state and who are lodged in different jails.



Additional Director General (CID) Kuldip Huda said in Jammu on Nov. 16 that the deportation of militants to Pakistan would confirm the role of the country in fomenting militancy in the state. The militants sought to be deported include commanders of militant outfits like the Harkat-ul-Ansar and the Muslim Liberation Army.



India and Pakistan agreed on Nov. 15 to set up an official three-member anti-terrorism mechanism that will function as nodal point through which all future cross-border cooperation on counter-terrorism will be routed. This is a follow up to the proposal first mooted at the Havana summit between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf earlier this year.







Speaking after two days of the Foreign Secretary-level talks in New Delhi, Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohd. Khan said his country will look into the evidence presented by India of cross-border terror links. Confirming that India has presented some material of cross-border terrorism, he said the evidence pertains to earlier terrorist attacks, and not the July 11 Mumbai blasts. Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon said information on the Mumbai blasts could be handed over only after a chargesheet is filed in the court. Menon said India had asked Pakistan to put an end to the activities of terrorist groups banned in both countries such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad.



In a related development, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Nov. 16 that India has, “reasonably strong evidence” of the involvement of Pakistani Government agencies in terrorism within the country. In a media interview, Mukherjee said he was not convinced by Pakistani denial of involvement.





Separatists talk to Pakistan Foreign Secretary



Leaders of separatist groups in Kashmir met Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohd. Khan during his stay in New Delhi last week. Reports say that Pakistan asked them to first settle their differences and start speaking in one voice to facilitate a better deal for the people. The Pakistan Foreign Secretary is reported to have suggested to the All Party Hurriyat Conference and other separatist leaders to set up a coordinating body of the different groups. However, his efforts on Nov. 14 night were not entirely successful as hardline Hurriyat leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani ruled out joining hands with ‘those who have different goals.’



Democratic Freedom party leader Shabir Ahmed Shah appreciated Khan’s idea of a coordination committee. Abdul Gani Bhat who led the moderate Hurriyat group for talks with Khan in the absence of its chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, said resumption of the Indo-Pak dialogue was a good omen, but its sustenance depended on resolution of the Kashmir problem.



The Pakistanis had originally planned a dinner meeting of Khan with all the leaders together, but conceded to their demand for meeting him separately. There was, however, one issue on which the separatist leaders seemed to agree. All of them complained that confidence building measures (CBMs) were not percolating to the ground in Jammu and Kashmir.



JKLF chief Yasin Malik presented a four-point formula to Khan which asked for inclusion of Kashmiris in the decision-making process, need for accentuation of the peace process, arriving at a solution acceptable to Kashmiris besides India and Pakistan and finally ending killings and human rights violations in the region.







Twin blasts



Even as the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan were talking in New Delhi to find ways to eradicate terrorism, militants triggered two powerful explosions in the Kashmir valley, targeting a Central Reserve Police Force camp in the heart of the Srinagar and an Army convoy in Baramulla, in northern Kashmir. Forty-two people, mostly security personnel, including an Army Major, were injured in the blasts.



Meanwhile, the state Government is understood to have proposed raising of 15 Armed battalions, similar to the Special Operations Group, as part of the police set up to take charge of security in the valley. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad reportedly discussed the proposal with the Prime Minister earlier this month.



The purpose of raising the extra battalions from among its own people - following the Punjab model where the Army handed over charge to the police while pulling out of the militancy-hit state, is to remove the Army and paramilitary forces from civilian areas and create job opportunities for around 15,000 Kashmiri youth. This move could also prevent unemployed Kashmiri youth from being recruited by terrorists.



People in the valley have long been complaining about “harassment” from “outside” forces. Human Rights organizations have also been asking for withdrawal of forces from the Valley. In fact, PDP has also been vociferous about rights violations by SOG and there has been a demand for its disbanding.





State government to recover land valued at Rs. 25,000 crore



The Jammu and Kashmir cabinet has decided to take drastic steps to recover 2.5 lakh acres of Government land under illegal occupation for decades. The current market price of the land is Rs. 25,000 crore, much more than the budget of the state for the past ten years. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Nov. 16, “I think there was a need for some one to take this bold initiative. I thought, I would do it.”



Illegal occupiers would be offered a discount ranging from 10 to 30 per cent if they deposit the cost of the land within a period of three months to one year.