United Nations, February 22

The powerful UN Security Council has strongly condemned the “heinous and cowardly” Pulwama terror attack by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed and underlined the need to hold perpetrators of these “reprehensible acts” of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice.

Forty Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed in a suicide attack by JeM in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14, sparking outrage in the country.

“The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the heinous and cowardly suicide bombing in Jammu and Kashmir, which left 40 Indian paramilitary forces dead and dozens wounded on February 14, 2019, for which Jaish-e-Mohammed has claimed responsibility,” the UN Security Council said in a statement on the ‘Suicide Bombing in Jammu and Kashmir’ on Thursday.

The powerful UN organ, which includes five permanent members China, France, Russia, the UK and the US, “underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice”, it said.

The top UN body urged all states, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with the Government of India and all other relevant authorities.

The press statement is highly significant as China, a permanent member of the Council, has in the past repeatedly blocked India’s bids in the Security Council Sanctions Committee to designate JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist.

“A statement with many firsts takes more time than expected. In complex diplomatic situations, however, it is better to be late than never,” India’s permanent representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin tweeted on the UNSC statement.

On whether China raised any objections to the statement, sources told PTI here that drafting the statement was a “prolonged process” and was issued after “prolonged discussions”.

The members of the Security Council also expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the Indian people and the Government of India, and wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured.

“The members of the Security Council reaffirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constituted one of the most serious threats to international peace and security,” it said.

The Council also reiterated that “any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed”.

The UNSC reaffirmed the need for all states to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and other obligations under international law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts, it said.

The condemnation by the UN organ comes a day after Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Maleeha Lodhi met top UN leaders, including Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council president Anatolio Ndong Mba of Equatorial Guinea, briefing them about the escalating tensions in the region in the wake of the Pulwama attack.

In a major boost to India’s efforts to get Azhar on the list of global terrorists, France is expected to soon move a proposal in the Sanctions Committee to ban the head of the UN-proscribed group.

The proposal, when moved, will be fourth such bid at the UN in past 10 years.

In 2009, India moved by itself a proposal to designate Azhar. This was followed in 2016 when India moved the proposal with the P3–the US, the UK and France–in the UN’s 1267 Sanctions Committee to ban Azhar, also the mastermind of attack on the air base in Pathankot in January 2016.

In 2017, the P3 nations moved a similar proposal again. However, China always blocked the proposal from being adopted by the UN.

Guterres, too, had strongly condemned the terror attack and called for those behind the attack to be brought to justice.

On Wednesday, he again reiterated his strong condemnation of the terrorist attack, stressing that it is essential that there be accountability under international law and perpetrators of terrorist acts be brought swiftly to justice.

“The Secretary-General has been following with great concern the situation in South Asia. He reiterates his strong condemnation of the terrorist attack against Indian security forces in Pulwama,” a statement issued by his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric had said.

At the same time, the Secretary-General “urgently” appealed to the Governments of both India and Pakistan to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the situation did not further deteriorate.

“It is the belief of the Secretary-General that all difficult challenges can be resolved peacefully and satisfactorily through meaningful mutual engagement,” it said.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet had also strongly condemned the attack and called on authorities to bring those responsible to justice.

“The High Commissioner strongly condemns the suicide bomb attack against Indian security forces in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on February 14 and calls on authorities to bring those responsible to justice,” Spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Rupert Colville had said in Geneva on Tuesday. PTI

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 18

Attacking the BJP-led Central Government and the SAD, Congress leader Nimisha Mehta questioned the “will” of the two parties to have the Kartarpur corridor open for Sikh devotees.

Nimisha said Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal had all the time to point fingers at the conversation between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu but it was sad that she had not realised that her dear NDA government ministers were awaiting a proposal from Pakistan for opening the corridor.

“It is strange that it is the need of Sikh devotees of India to open the corridor and the Central Government, of which Harsimrat Badal herself is a part, and the Centre is expecting a proposal from Pakistan itself. How is it possible? If Indians are being affected, of course the Indian Government will have to put in a request and take an initiative keeping in view the faith of people,” said Nimisha.

But the statements of Union MoS VK Singh that they expect a proposal from Pakistan itself clarifies that it was a sheer delay tactic and a deep-rooted conspiracy of the SAD.

“How can we expect Pakistan to initiate things on its own when we need it the most here as devotees of our country want to visit Pakistan and not Pakistanis want to come here,” she said.

Nimisha said if Sidhu had gone to Pakistan, at least he raised the issue pertaining to millions of Sikh devotees whereas when the Badal family visited Pakistan they returned with buffaloes as a gift in 2012.

She added that the SAD was making tall claims of building the corridor now, whereas its leaders never accompanied the party’s then sidelined leader Kuldip Singh Wadala, who passed away months ago, even for a single prayer for opening of the corridor.

Majid Jahangir & Suhail A Shah
Tribune News Service
Srinagar/Pulwama, February 18

Four days after the suicide bombing that killed 40 CRPF personnel, security forces dealt a major blow to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) when they gunned down three of its top commanders in a fierce gun battle in Pulwama district.

Five security personnel, including a Major, were killed while seven others, including a Brigadier, Deputy Inspector General of Police and a Lieutenant Colonel, were injured in the 18-hour-long gunfight. A civilian too died during the encounter.

The police say one of the killed Jaish commanders, Kamran, a Pakistani national, was heading the outfit in Kashmir and his role in Thursday’s suicide bombing was being probed.

The gunfight broke out at 12.45 am at populated Pinglena village when joint teams of forces were preparing for a search operation following an input about the presence of Jaish militants in the area. As the cordon was being laid, the Quick Action Team of the Army came under intense fire resulting in injuries to five soldiers, including the Major who was leading the team.

“The officer and three other jawans later succumbed to their injuries,” a defence official said. The four slain soldiers are Major Vibhuti Shankar Dhoundiyal, 33, of Dehradun, Uttarakhand; Havildar Sheo Ram, 36, of Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan; Sepoy Hari Singh, 26, of Rewari, Haryana and Sepoy Ajay Kumar, 27, of Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. Later, a policeman, Head Constable Abdul Rasheed, was also killed.

The killed civilian was identified as Mushtaq Ahmed.  The forces engaged the militants who were shuttling from one house to another and killed two of them. When the security forces tried to close in on the third, he fired burst injuring three officers. He was cornered towards the evening and killed after the forces launched the final assault.

“It was his firing that left a policeman dead and six others, including Brigadier, 12 Sector Rashtriya Rifles, Harbir Singh, DIG (south Kashmir) Amit Kumar and a Lt Col injured,” a police official said.

Vijay Kumar, adviser to J&K Governor, said two of the slain militants were Pakistani nationals. “Kamran and a local militant, Hilal, were killed. The identity of the third is being verified, though initially probe suggests he is Rashid Bahi alias Gazi Umar, also a Pakistani,” he said.

Police said Kamran had taken over as operational commander of JeM after his predecessor Mufti Waqas was killed in an encounter in February last year.

J&K DGP Dilbag Singh the slain militants had a role in the recent terror bombing. “Details are awaited, but there are fair indications the trio was in one way or the other involved in the attack,” Singh said. The DGP said he had nothing to say about Kamran being an Afghan war veteran.

However, senior security officials in Srinagar suspect that Kamran was involved in planning the terror attack. “For sure, he has some role in the attack as Adil (suicide bomber) was part of his module,” said the police officer.

Soon after the suicide bombing, security agencies had formed multiple teams to track the Jaish members who were involved in planning the attack. A senior police official from Pulwama said many over-ground workers of militants were rounded up. “The questioning of those detained led us to Pinglena village where the militants were hiding,” he said.

Plea in SC seeking judicial probe into Uri, Pulwama terror attacks 

New Delhi: A lawyer has moved the Supreme Court seeking a judicial probe into Uri and Pulwama terror attacks. While 19 soldiers had died in the September 18, 2016, Uri attack, 40 CRPF men lost their lives in the Pulwama attack. Advocate Vineet Dhanda has sought a freeze on bank accounts of Hurriyat and its leaders, besides an action taken report by government. TNS

Our Correspondent

Nurpur, February 16

The mortal remains of CRPF jawan Tilak Raj reached his native village in Jawali on Saturday morning. Heart-wrenching scenes were witnessed as relatives and neighbours were unable to console the devastated family.

The mortal remains were received by Transport Minister Kishan Kapoor, Nurpur MLA Rakesh Pathania and Jawali MLA Arjun Singh at the Pathankot Air Force station last night and kept at the PWD rest house in Nurpur.

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur laid the wreath on the coffin carrying the remains of the jawan draped in the Tricolour.

The martyr’s three-year-old son, Varun, had no idea what was happening, but seeing others cry, he too started crying.

“The family has lost its bread-winner,” a relative said. Tilak Raj had called his wife Savitri Devi on Thursday morning, just six hours before he was martyred, to tell her that the CRPF convoy had started from Jammu and was on its way to Srinagar. He asked her to take care of his parents and the newborn.

Little did Savitri know that her world would come crashing down in a few hours. The braveheart was cremated with full state honours in the presence of thousands of people, who had gathered there to pay their last respects to the martyr. Slogans against Pakistan were raised. While consoling the martyr’s father, Layak Ram, mother Bimla Devi, wife and other family members, the Chief Minister said Tilak Raj had laid down his life for the nation and in this hour of grief, the state government would extend all possible assistance to the bereaved family.

Baldev Singh, the elder brother of Tilak Raj, lit the pyre. Those present raised solgans “Tilak Raj amar rahe”.

Pulwama attack: Funeral held for Kangra martyr

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Tribune News Service
Shimla, February 16

Mortal remains of 30-year-old Tilak Raj, a CRPF trooper who was killed in the Pulwama attack, consigned to flames at his native village in Kangra’s Jawali on Saturday.

Thousands gathered to say their last goodbyes to the martyr as Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and Union Health Minister JP Nadda paid their respects. People anger was palpable in the anti-Pakistan slogans they shouted.

The trooper left a wife Savitri Devi and two very young sons—aged 3 and a month-old infant. His brother lit the funeral pyre.

Thakur said the nation shared the family’s grief and was proud of the trooper’s sacrifice. He promised a job to the martyr’s wife as well as possible assistance.

A vehicle plies on the Manali-Keylong highway after the restoration of the Rohtang Pass for traffic on Friday.

Snow being removed on the route. Tribune photos

Dipender Manta

Tribune News Service

Mandi, November 23

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) restored the Rohtang Pass, the gateway to Lahaul on the Manali-Leh highway, for vehicular movement on Friday afternoon. The pass was closed on November 12 following heavy snowfall.

Residents of tribal district Lahaul-Spiti heaved a sigh of relief with the opening of the pass. They suffered a lot after the closure of Rohtang, which left them with no road connectivity and telecommunication services.

They also demanded to move through the Rohtang tunnel, but the BRO authority refused to let them pass, citing security reasons as the tunnel is under construction.

After a lot of drama, the BRO had to clear snow from the road across the Rohtang Pass after some Lahaul villagers tried to use an under-construction tunnel as an alternative earlier this week. As many as 80 persons entered the tunnel forcibly to reach Manali on Monday. Some of them fell unconscious due to lack of oxygen.

This mounted pressure on the BRO as well as the state government, which raised the issue with the Defence Ministry to ask the BRO to engage its workforce and machinery to restore the pass.

BRO Commander Col AK Awasthi said: “With the tireless efforts of the BRO workforce, the pass has been restored for traffic. Our workers defied odds and worked in freezing temperature to clear the snow on the Manali-Leh highway via the Rohtang Pass to provide road connectivity to the people of Lahaul-Spiti.”

Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Lahaul, said: “We are thankful to the BRO as well as the state government for restoring the pass. In Lahaul, around 1,200 bags of potato produce (50kg each) are trapped in the Miyar valley. The people have been requesting the state government to make arrangements for its transportation at the earliest.”

He said the Rohtang Pass could shut anytime in the coming days due to snowfall and the government should take steps to transport the potato produce out of the Lahaul valley as soon as possible.

The movement of tourist vehicles is allowed up to Gulaba only and no vehicle will be allowed to move towards the Rohtang Pass.

Manali SDM Raman Gharsangi told The Tribune that the movement of tourist vehicles was restricted. “Only residents of Lahaul are allowed to travel between Kullu and Lahaul via the Rohtang Pass depending upon the weather conditions,” he added.

Every year, the Rohtang Pass is closed for traffic on November 15, but this year, tribals forced the BRO to restore it even after the official deadline

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New Delhi: India is facing complex and dynamic security challenges along its borders, which are a threat to the country’s territorial integrity and internal stability, Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat has said.

In a new year message to Army personnel, he hailed the collective grit, determination and sacrifices of the troops in standing up to the challenges along the borders as well as in combating threats of terrorism.

He, however, did not mention about the situation along India’s nearly 4,000- km frontier with China or along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Our steadfast resolve to ensure territorial integrity has been evident from the collective grit, determination and sacrifice of our troops who have stood their ground under the most challenging, inhospitable and most hostile circumstances,” General Rawat said.

The Indian Army has been firmly dealing with infiltration bids and incidents of unprovoked firing by Pakistani Army along the Line of Control (LoC) in J&K.

The Army has also improved its vigilance in several key sectors along the border with China following last year’s Doklam episode.

“All ranks have displayed highest degree of sincerity and commitment while guarding our frontiers, combating terrorism and insurgency,” the Army Chief said.

He also appealed to the 12-lakh strong Army personnel to work with added zeal in dealing with security challenges facing the country.

“We need to continue to work with added zeal while upholding our core values of integrity, loyalty, duty, respect selfless service, courage and honour to fulfil our constitutional obligations and assigned roles,” he said.

General Rawat described his force as one of the most disciplined and professional armies in the world, adding that it must preserve that pride with dignity and honour.

“I am sanguine that the rank and file of the Indian Army will continue to discharge their responsibilities in the best traditions of our organisation,” he said.

General Rawat also mentioned about the “stellar role” the Army played during the devastating floods in Kerala as well as the way it has discharged its duties in the UN missions.

“I salute all those personnel who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty for the nation in the past year. I wish speedy recovery to all others who are recovering from injuries in the line of duty,” the Army Chief said.

Imran Khan, along with senior Cabinet ministers, was briefed on Wednesday in detail on the various strategic intelligence.

Imran Khan has been accused by his critics of being the security establishment’s man. (File)

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