The Hindu – No compromise on environment conservation for tourism: J & K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah

Srinagar, 26 May 2012. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday said a well planned strategy was required to boost tourism without compromising with the conservation of environment.

“Various modules are available to focus simultaneously on both these important areas”, Mr. Omar said interacting with a group of 31 India Forest Service (IFS) Probationers here.

Replying to the IFS Probationers questions on the development of tourism and conservation of environment, the Chief Minister said, the aggressive marketing of tourism by Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh has badly affected the aspect of environment there.

“A balanced approach has to be put in place to develop and market tourism without compromising on the issue of environment importance”, he said, adding, the challenge in Jammu and Kashmir is in the area of creating a befitting infrastructure for tourists.

“We have underlined strict adherence to environment preservation and protection pre-requisite for infrastructure development in the tourist areas. The monitoring by courts has also narrowed down the chances of environment degradation due to infrastructure development”, he said.

The Chief Minister said the constructions at tourist places in the past have been haphazard and there is now a ban on any construction in tourist places like Pahalgam.

The group of IFS Probationers, first in the last 30 years, are on a study tour of the State to get appraisal of forest management measures and strategies in place to conserve forest wealth and the environment.

Replying to another question, Mr. Omar said timber smuggling during the time of militancy has damaged the forest wealth of the State.

“Generation of a forest takes decades. We have concentrated on rejuvenation of the depleted forests under CAMPA and under various State and Centrally sponsored schemes”, the Chief Minister said.

Stating stringent laws were in force to curb smuggling of timber and illegal felling of trees, Mr. Omar said, “The Forest Department is strictly enforcing these laws”.

The Chief Minister said the state Forest Department has identified pastures for grazing of cattle of migratory population.

“Measures are in place to maintain these pastures,” he said adding that cattle grazing in the mountains is being allowed in a well-planned and disciplined manner.

In reply to a question about manufacturing of bats and supply of timber, Mr. Omar said, the timber industry and afforestation can thrive side-by-side under a balanced approach towards both.

“Using of willow for manufacture of bats and supply of timber for construction purposes should keep pace with the afforestation and conservation process”, he said, adding, the State government is allowing import of timber to relieve the pressure on the local plantation.

On the conservation of Dal lake and rehabilitation of Dal dwellers, the Chief Minister said a comprehensive plan has been put in place to address both the issues.

He said the aspect of dependence of Dal dwellers on the lake is being taken care of in the overall rehabilitation policy for these families.

Mr. Omar said reaching out to the people and making them feel that you are one among them creates a lasting impression in society.

“There are scores of such examples of officers who served in the State in various capacities and imprinted praiseworthy and lasting impression in the minds of people for the sincere service they rendered”, he said and asked the probationers to make this approach the standard of service delivery. (PTI)

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3459433.ece

The Tribune – Political storm brews over Jammu & Kashmir report

Arun Joshi, Tribune News Service

Jammu, May 25. The political temperature in J&K has suddenly risen since the report of three interlocutors was released on Thursday. There are strong anti-report voices, some even terming it as a step towards state’s disintegration. Neither Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has reacted nor have the Muftis of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party. It is clear each side is waiting for the other to react first in order to score some brownie points on the language used.

This is the first sign of a rise in temperature in the political landscape, some of which was visible in the protests in Jammu as well as the common Kashmiris, some of whom felt the report was hinting more or less at the physical and psychological division of the state.

The Jammu-centric parties were apprehensive over the interlocutors’ suggestion that the Central laws extended to the state post-1953 be examined by a constitutional panel.

In the sensitive border state, where each word is interpreted in more than one way, these protests and a plethora of statements condemning the report signify more than what meets the eye.

“It (the report) is a clear attempt to change the course of history,” said Harshdev Singh, senior leader of the J&K National Panthers Party. His party champions the cause of Jammu and is against restoring greater autonomy to the state.

In Kashmir, a feeling somehow has gone around that the balance is tilted towards the two regions – Jammu and Ladakh. The CM has gone into a mulling mode, telling the media and others who follow him on the micro-blogging site Twitter that he “will take a few days to examine the report, discuss it with senior colleagues & then react.” He counseled patience to all.

Not long ago, Omar asked for the early release of the interlocutors’ report and implementation of its recommendations. As the report suggests high-power regional councils for three regions – Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh with legislative and executive powers – it is being read as a design to divide the state. The report also comes at a time when the tourist season is peaking. Any “wrong word” can ignite the situation.

Aware of the fallout from an off-the-cuff reaction, the Chief Minister is walking the lane of silence at the moment. Sources say if he supports the report, he would have to do it in totality, and if he condemns it, then he would be seen as the one who is deviating from the path of autonomy. The moment he speaks — for or against – he’d risk a political storm.

A glimpse of that came when NC’s additional general secretary Sheikh Mustafa Kamal said: “The NC would not allow division of the state.” The timing and the words dropped clear hints of what lies ahead.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120526/main4.htm

The Hindu – J&K interlocutors’ report for reviewing all Central Acts

Vinay Kumar

New Delhi, 24 May 2012. The final report of the Central government-appointed Group of Interlocutors for Jammu and Kashmir has ruled out a return to the pre-1953 position, and recommended the setting up of a Constitutional Committee (CC), to review all Central Acts and Articles of the Constitution of India, extended to the State after the signing of the 1952 Agreement.

The report of the Centre’s interlocutors — eminent journalist Dileep Padgaonkar, academician Radha Kumar, and former information commissioner M. M. Ansari — suggested a future-oriented approach (one that takes into full account the strategic, political, economic and cultural changes in the State, in India as a whole, in the South-Asian region and beyond, as a result of globalisation) should enable all stakeholders to reach a rapid agreement on the Articles of the Constitution of India.

While upholding Article 370 that gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir, the 176-page report underlined that “the clock cannot be set back” but felt that the “erosion” of Article 370 during the decades needed to be “re-appraised” to give it more powers.

It recommended deletion of the word “temporary” from the heading of Article 370, and from the title of Part XXI of the Constitution, and suggested replacing it with the word “Special” as it has been used for rest of the States under Article 371.

The report was uploaded on Thursday on the website of the Union Home Ministry for the benefit of the public at large. “The views expressed in the report are the views of the interlocutors. The Government still hasn’t taken any decision on the report. The Government will welcome an informed debate on the contents of the report,” a statement by the official spokesperson of the Home Ministry said here.

The interlocutors’ report was placed in public domain two days after the Budget Session of Parliament ended, and at a time when Home Secretary-level talks are being held between India and Pakistan in Islamabad.

The group of interlocutors had held extensive deliberations with the State government, political parties, civil society, stakeholders at the State and national levels. They submitted their report to the Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram on October 12, 2011, exactly a year after their appointment.

Mr. Padgaonkar later said that interlocutors haven’t recommended abolition of Article 370. “What we have said is that we aren’t inventing something. Under Article 371, there are several States of the Union, which have been designated as special category states.”

The report has recommended a status quo in the use of nomenclatures in English of the Governor and Chief Minister, and equivalent nomenclatures in Urdu may be used. Until 1965, the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir was addressed as ‘Wazir-e-Azam’ [Prime Minister] and the Governor as ‘Sadar-e-Riyasat’ [President].

Proposing a “New Compact” with the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the report focuses on three components — political, economic and social and cultural — forming a single package, which cannot be accepted on a selective basis.

Under the political component, the report deals with Centre-State relations and internal devolution of powers, and suggests a road map listing confidence-building measures. It favours amendment of the Public Safety Act, review of Disturbed Areas Act, and re-appraisal of application of controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA).

The report favoured resumption of the dialogue process between the Centre and Hurriyat Conference “at the earliest opportunity”. It expressed the hope that such a dialogue “should yield visible outcomes and be made uninterruptible.”

Dwelling further on the dialogue process, the interlocutors recommended that Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir should be encouraged to enter into a dialogue on the recommendations as fine-tuned by the Constitutional Committee (CC), and points emerging from the Government-Hurriyat dialogue. It favoured an agreement between India and Pakistan to promote civil society interactions for Jammu and Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control.

The report recommended that the search for solution shouldn’t be made contingent on India-Pakistan talks. “If the stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir are willing to enter into a settlement, the door can always be kept open for Pakistan to join. The key goal is, as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has expressed, to make the LoC irrelevant. It should become a symbol of Concord and Cooperation,” it said.

Some other recommendations include speedy implementation of the recommendations of the Prime Minister’s working group on CBMs, in particular, making the return of all Kashmiris, mainly Pandits, a part of State policy; facilitating the return of Kashmiris stranded across the LoC; establishing a judicial commission to look into unmarked graves, speeding up human rights and the rule of law reforms.

Noting that the group’s recommendations will meet the political aspirations of the all the people of Jammu and Kashmir to a great extent without harming national interest, the interlocutors favoured creation of three Regional Councils, one each for Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.

“Parliament will make no laws applicable to the State unless it relates to the country’s internal and external security, and its vital economic interests, especially in the areas of energy and access to water resources,” it recommended.

The interlocutors suggested that the writ of autonomous and statutory institutions should be extended to the State, and their functioning should conform to the provisions of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir.

Pointing out that a general consensus existed on a political settlement in the state through a dialogue between all stakeholders, including those who aren’t part of the mainstream, the report recommended that Jammu and Kashmir should function as a single entity.

The report said the State assembly will submit three names to the President for the post of Governor, who will be appointed by the President. It also suggested that there should be no change in Article 356, and if the State government is dismissed, elections should be held within three months.

The group said that the proposed Constitutional Committee could complete its work in six months, and present it findings to the Parliament and State Legislature. The CC should be mandated to conduct its review, bearing in mind the dual character of Jammu and Kashmir — being a constituent unit of the Indian union, and enjoying a special status under Article 370 of the Constitution — and the dual character of the people — state subjects as well as Indian citizens.

“The review will, therefore, have to determine if — and to what extent — the central Acts and Articles of the Constitution of India, extended with or without amendment to the state, have dented Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, and abridged the State government’s powers to cater to the welfare of its people,” it said. The next step would be for the President, in exercise of powers under Article 370, to issue an order incorporating the recommendations of the CC.

The report recommended that for promotion of the State’s economic self-reliance, a fresh financial agreement between the Centre and the State was required.

The report made several recommendations to harmonise relations between people on both the sides of Line of Control, including a hassle-free movement of people and goods across the LoC, and a consultative mechanism, where elected representatives from both sides can deliberate on issues of common interests like water, economy, tourism and trade.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3451474.ece

The Tribune – Omar turns people-centric at 5-hour interactive meet

Arun Joshi, Tribune News Service

Jammu, May 22. It was meant to be a CM’s show at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre, Srinagar on Monday evening. But it came with a difference: from 4 pm to 9.45 pm, Omar Abdullah looked reflective, unusually self-effacing, his gravitas lurching to a more down-to-earth approach than what has been in evidence since he came to power three years ago.

The CM was interacting with civil society members, who like him, looked equally weighed down by the deaths of 368 infants at Srinagar’s GB Pant Hospital, the seemingly unending power outages, the rains and snow that have damaged the fruit crop.

“The CM appeared a changed person,” remarked Haji Jan Mohammad Koul, president Kashmir Traders Federation. “After all, the unprecedented five-hour interaction was a two-way traffic, where Omar took notes and appeared people-centric, laughed and made us to laugh too,” said Koul.

Many recall the 2010 unrest when he was repeatedly advised by Home Minister P Chidambarm to “reach out to the people”. Or the taunts he received for not visiting Shopian after the alleged rape and murder of two women there. In that backdrop,

Omar’s latest initiative with the people is seen as a sort of new beginning for him.

Omar is no longer “a happy to be CM” kind, said a ministerial colleague. Omar is aware he is facing a tough political competition both from within the coalition government and outside. That’s perhaps why he has gone back to the basics of politics: the people.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120523/main5.htm

The Tribune – Lashkar posters surface in another Kashmir town

Majid Jahangir, Tribune News Service

Srinagar, May 15. Panic spread among residents of Pattan after posters from two militant outfits, threatening 13 persons, including a woman, were seen pasted on tree trunks and walls of the township in Baramulla district of north Kashmir yesterday.

Two militant outfits Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen have warned residents against “working as informers” and participating in the local bodies elections. This is almost a month after posters, reportedly pasted by LeT militants, had surfaced in south Kashmir, asking elected panches and sarpanches to resign or “face the consequences”. The handwritten Urdu posters in Pattan, jointly issued by the LeT and Hizb, have identified 13 local residents, including political workers and truck drivers, for allegedly working with various security agencies.

Sources said the posters stated that those mentioned in the list would be “killed” any time for their “association” with security agencies. After the posters appeared, panic gripped the township located on the Srinagar-Baramulla national highway.

The police has started the investigation to ascertain the authenticity of the posters.

“We have started investigation into the matter and a case under the Unlawful Activities Act has been registered,” said the Station House Officer, Pattan, Mohammad Abdullah. “We have questioned a few persons but so far no one has been arrested,” he added.

Police sources, however, said the handwritten posters issued by Abu Talha, District Commander, and Javid Khan, Tehsil Commander for Pattan, did not look genuine. It was also not mentioned whether these commanders belonged to the LeT or Hizb. “It can be the result of an internal rivalry. But we are still looking into the matter,” said a senior police officer in Baramulla.

While the police in north Kashmir is suspecting that these posters have not been “really issued” by the outfits, the police in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district — where the LeT posters had threatened panches and sarpanches in April — has concluded that the posters were not genuine.

“We had picked up three boys, but they were later released. Also the logo of the LeT that was on the posters pasted in Pulwama was not the actual logo of the outfit,” said Superintendent of Police, Pulwama, Amit Kumar.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120516/j&k.htm#11

The Asian Age – Malik: Line of Control will soon fall like Berlin wall

Yusuf Jameel, Asian Age Correspondent

Srinagar, 16 May 2012. Pro-independence Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leader Muhammad Yasin Malik on Tuesday regretted New Delhi’s reported decision not to allow him return home from Pakistan using the Chakoti-Uri, crossing point along the Line of Control (LoC), to attend the funeral of his father who died in Srinagar earlier on Monday.

There has been no word from New Delhi on Mr Malik’s claim and the officials of the state government here said they had no knowledge about the matter and, in fact, were not supposed to speak on the issue necessarily related to MEA.

“It is really unfortunate that we the people of Kashmir can’t cross this bloody line even in urgent situation. This shows our helplessness. But I’m sure as death that like Berlin Wall this unnatural barrier will also be demolished one day,” the JKLF leader told this newspaper after attending the funeral of his father Ghulam Qadir Malik, 65, who died of lungs failure.

Hundreds of people, including senior separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq attended the funeral here on Tuesday afternoon soon after Yasin Malik arrived here from New Delhi. Chief minister Omar Abdullah also condoled the demise of Senior Malik expressing sympathy with the bereaved family and prayed for peace to the departed soul.

JKLF leader, whose Pakistani wife Mushaal Mullick recently gave birth to a baby girl in Islamabad, said that a Srinagar-based journalist called him up in Islamabad to inform that the Indian authorities have hinted at him being allowed to cross the LoC at Chakoti-Uri if a formal request was made by Islamabad.

http://www.asianage.com/india/malik-loc-will-soon-fall-berlin-wall-233

The Hindu – Ladakh troop revolt underlines Army class tensions

14 Corps Commander strikes deal with angry soldiers, defusing crisis — but hard questions remain

Praveen Swami

New Delhi, 12 May 2012. Forty-eight hours after troops of the Ladakh-based 226 Field Regiment staged a revolt against officers they said were responsible for the brutal beating of an enlisted man, the Army is facing hard questions whether its colonial-era institutions are generating a crisis within its ranks.

Men of the 226 Field Infantry marched through the town of Nyoma late on Thursday night, armed with rods and knives, seeking to hunt down five Major-rank officers they said were responsible for the brutal beating of Suman Ghosh — an enlisted man assigned as a personal valet.

The men also staged protests, using loudspeakers to shout slogans condemning the officers and raise nationalist slogans. The fighting left at least three soldiers — including the sahayak —injured.

Early on Saturday, highly-placed military sources told The Hindu, Leh-based 14 Corps Commander Lieutenant-General Ravi Dastane finally hammered out a deal with the soldiers — a deal which promises officers who used beatings against enlisted men will be punished, in return for the soldiers relocating to their base at Thiksey.

In New Delhi, the Army Headquarters described the clash — the worst of its kind since some units mutinied in 1984 — as “an incident of indiscipline,” not a mutiny. The Army has set up a court to inquire into the incident.

Officers, not Gentlemen?

Late on Thursday evening, after the 226 Field Regiment finished a firing-practice session with their 105-millimetre mountain guns in the Mahé range near Nyoma, witnesses saw a fracas break out. Major A K Sharma, one of the unit’s officers, claimed his wife was insulted by the sahayak. A highly placed source at 14 Corps Headquarters told The Hindu that the officer’s wife complained that Ghosh waked into her room without knocking while she was having a shower.

The sahayak, witnesses told The Hindu, was dragged into the Beacon ground near the range, and beaten up. Major Ankur Tewari, Major Kapil Malik, Major Thomas Verghese, Major A.D. Kanade and Major Sharma himself joined in the beating, documents seen by The Hindu say.

From the witnesses’ account, it is clear the men of the 226 Field Regiment did nothing — until it became clear Ghosh had suffered significant injuries. Major Kanade, however, allegedly refused to allow the men to move Ghosh to a medical facility, perhaps fearing it would lead to an internal inquiry on his conduct.

The irate men then began arguing with the officers; witnesses say there was a heated argument, accompanied by some pushing and shoving.

226 Field Regiment commander Colonel Prasad Kadam intervened, reprimanding the officers for their conduct — only to be allegedly assaulted by the five.

The Majors, witnesses said, then fled as troops arrived, saving Colonel Kadam.

Fearing attack by other Army units, some men barricaded themselves inside the quarter-guard, housing the armoury, while others marched into the town shouting Bharat Mata ki Jai [“Long Live India”]. Major Sharma was captured and beaten up; the men moved him to hospital thereafter.

Early on Friday morning, Major-General A L Chavan, commander of the Leh-based 3 Infantry Division, arrived in Nyoma and began negotiating with the troops, promising them that force would not be used.

In a press release, the Army Headquarters insisted that Colonel Kadam’s injuries were “superficial,” but highly-placed military sources said he was still in a field hospital on Saturday afternoon.

Simmering class tensions

Earlier this month, the Army announced it was considering doing away with the colonial-era institution of the sahayak, or batmen as they were earlier known — trained soldiers who are assigned to serve as valets.

The 30,000-odd men serving as sahayaks are expected not just to ensure that their officers’ uniforms are in order and their personal comfort is cared for, but ferry their children to school and help with their spouses’ shopping.

The batman system was long abandoned in the British Army, from which India drew it; even Pakistan dropped the institution in 2004. In India, however, it remains in place — a major cause of humiliation for men enlisted to serve their country.

It isn’t only the institution of the sahayak, though, that is a cause of friction: India’s two-class Army, divided rigidly between sahibs and men, ill-reflects the social realities of the country today.

For its part, the officer corps is ill-equipped to deal with a changing world. In a recent article, scholar Srinath Raghavan pointed out that the Army recruits officers “at a much younger age than most other democracies.”

Colonial-era culture

Their subsequent in-house education submerges young men in the military’s colonial-era culture, leaving them ill-equipped to understand the changed values and aspirations of the soldiers serving under their command.

“In the first decades after Independence,” a retired officer told The Hindu, “enlisted men came from backgrounds which led them to unquestioningly accept feudal attitudes and values. The officers were also products of the same feudal landscape. It doesn’t exist any more — but the institutions remain.”

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3412907.ece?homepage=true

The Tribune – Commanding Officer hurt as Major, jawans clash in Leh

Ajay Banerjee & Ehsan Fazili, Tribune News Service

New Delhi/Srinagar, May 11. In a virtual free-for-all, soldiers and officers of an Army unit posted at a remote area of Ladakh clashed among themselves after a jawan allegedly misbehaved with an officer’s wife yesterday.

Among the six injured were the Commanding Officer (CO) of the 226 Field Regiment, Colonel Prasad Kadam, and a Major.

The Army has ordered a court of inquiry and the injured are being treated at the Leh Military Hospital. The Defence Ministry has also sought a report. Army Chief General V K Singh spoke to Northern Army Commander KT Parnaik and discussed the issue.

Army spokesman Colonel Jagdeep Dahiya said the situation was under control.

The incident took place at Mahe near the Nyoma airfield in Leh, about 50 km from the Line of Actual Control, reports said.

Sources said the Regiment — some 550 men and officers — had just finished its firing practice last evening when a fight broke out after a ‘sahayak’ (identified as Suman Ghosh) allegedly misbehaved with a Major’s wife.

The Major then allegedly beat up the jawan and did not allow his medical treatment, fuelling anger among the colleagues. The situation worsened after news reached the Commanding Officer, who reportedly shouted at the Major for his behaviour. The Major, accompanied by five of his colleagues, then, allegedly assaulted the CO in the presence of the jawans, a PTI report said.

The jawans briefly took control of the armoury, but did not withdraw any weapons, sources said. The unit was cordoned off this morning by the Army and state police. The General Office Commanding (GOC) 14 Corps Lt General Ravi Dastane visited the place this morning.

Superintendent of Police (Leh) Vivek Gupta was camping in Nyoma along with heavy reinforcements following a report by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate that Army jawans, armed with sticks and knives, were holding a protest, sources said.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120512/main4.htm

The Hindu – Armed forces asked to meet new challenges

Sandeep Joshi

New Delhi, 8 May 2012. Defence Minister A. K. Antony on Tuesday said India was raising an offensive Corps and taking steps to boost its preparedness along the border with China. Nobody should expect “dramatic” results from talks on Siachen with Pakistan, even as India continues to insist on proper authentication of Pakistan troop positions at the highest militarised zone, before any disengagement is undertaken there.

Expressing concern at growing military ties between Pakistan and China, Mr. Antony, while replying to a discussion on the performance of his Ministry in the Rajya Sabha, said the Indian armed forces have been issued a directive to change their strategy to meet the challenges presented by the two hostile nations.

“We have given a new directive to our armed forces to meet the new challenges, in the context of the new threat faced by the country. After analysis of the threat perception, we have found that the picture is problematic,” he said.

The Minister noted that India faced a “volatile and dangerous” neighbourhood. “No one can predict the situation that will prevail tomorrow. What will be the situation in Afghanistan — no one can predict. We cannot predict the political future of some of our neighbouring countries.”

On Siachen, Mr. Antony said: “Some people have said we are hardening our position; some say we have softened the position. We have neither hardened nor softened our position. We are standing where we were.”

The 13 round of Defence Secretary-level talks on Siachen would take place in June second week. “Don’t expect dramatic results [from the next round of talks]… It is a complicated issue.”

Mr. Antony said the government was strengthening the defence capabilities. “Under the 12th Defence Plan, we have sent a proposal to the Finance Ministry to raise an offensive Corps with two special divisions, and it is in final stages. The force-level has been increased substantially. We had earlier approved raising of two mountain divisions, along with a Special Forces battalion, an artillery brigade and an armoured regiment for deployment in the northeast sector,” he said.

“If China can strengthen its capabilities in Tibet, then we can also build capabilities in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh,” the Minister asserted.

Defence budget

On defence expenditure, he said: “We will need to have a second look at the defence budget… We have been given Rs 1.93 lakh crore this year, but as per the estimated requirement of the armed forces, we would want Rs 2.39 lakh crore. We want Rs 45,716 crore more. I have asked the government to provide us more money.”

Mr. Antony pointed out that large-scale import of arms was another area of concern. The government was working towards replacing the foreign vendors with indigenous production.

“I hope that in the years to come, we would be able to replace foreign vendors in our country,” he added.

Referring to the delay in taking action on the alleged bribe offer to Army Chief General V. K. Singh, Mr. Antony said he had asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the matter as soon as the matter came into public domain. “That day [when General Singh reported the matter to him] I didn’t do anything… I accept that I didn’t take action, I don’t deny that. The Army Chief didn’t want to pursue it then, so I didn’t take action.”

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3397675.ece

The Tribune – Decision on AFSPA revocation coming soon, says Omar

Ehsan Fazili, Tribune News Service

Srinagar, May 7. Six months after he threw open a debate on revocation of the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today said he was hopeful of a significant development in the matter in the months ahead.

Omar said though the “final mile” had not been crossed, his government was on the “correct path”. “Unfortunately, so far we have not been able to cross the final mile towards the selective revocation of AFSPA, but we are on the correct path… In the months ahead, there has to be some development on the revocation of AFSPA from some areas of the state,” Omar said.

Addressing mediapersons after reopening of the Civil Secretariat in the state’s summer capital as part of the darbar move, the Chief Minister said he had taken up the matter with the Central Government.

On the occasion of Police Commemoration Day on October 21 last year, the Chief Minister had announced that AFSPA would be revoked from “some areas (of the State) very soon”.

The “silent option” trend adopted by my government on the issue did not yield results, Omar said, but added that it was necessary to have a public debate to get the desired results.

The Chief Minister said “significant progress” had already been made on revocation of the Act from some areas of the state where militancy had either gone down or come to an end. These areas included four districts, Srinagar-Budgam and Jammu-Samba in Kashmir and Jammu Divisions, respectively.

The Army has contended that it was fighting a proxy war in Kashmir and the issue continued to be on the agenda of Pakistan, its Army, and the ISI. With the militant leadership still based in Pakistan and at least 42 training camps training youth to create trouble this side of the LoC, the Army has been strongly opposed to selective revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act.

“We cannot take any chance or risk on security,” said a senior officer, adding that the Act’s revocation was an easy step to be taken, but its re-imposition would be difficult in any eventuality.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120508/main5.htm