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EC returns, focus on dates Near-consensus among parties on early polls 10/9/2008 6:43:31 PM EARLY TIMES REPORT JAMMU, Oct 8: After a first hand ground assessment and consultation exercise with political parties and government functionaries, the Election Commission team has wound up its two day visit to Srinagar leaving clear indications that announcement for the assembly elections may be just a matter of few days. The Election Commission team returned to New Delhi this evening. Sources claimed that three-phased elections may be announced next week after the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who is coming to state for inauguration of Srinagar rail line and Baglihar hydro-electric power project. Even though the full Election Commission team headed by Chief Election Commissioner of India N Gopalaswamy did not give its mind but the representatives of the political parties who attended the meeting are reported to have voiced a near-consensus on holding elections sooner. “Barring some genuine reservations from two political parties, almost every party appeared in agreement that there is no strong reason for putting off elections”, a political source told Early Times. ...   READ MORE

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Elections are futile exercise: Hurriyat 10/9/2008 6:43:04 PM EARLY TIMES REPORT SRINAGAR, Oct 8: Dubbing elections in J&K as a "futile exercise", Hurriyat's moderate faction today said India and Pakistan should accept the "reality" that such an exercise will not help resolve the Kashmir issue and instead focus on a "result-oriented" dialogue. A resolution adopted by the separatist amalgam after a special meeting of the executive council chaired by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq also supported dialogue with India and Pakistan, saying rejecting such a proposition "will be against the far-sightedness and realistic approach." "The election process is futile and meaningless as the exercise has neither led to the resolution of Kashmir in the past nor will it help ...   READ MORE   Arun Kumar fights back Attached IAS officer knocks CAT doors 10/9/2008 6:42:43 PM EARLY TIMES REPORT JAMMU, Oct 8: Facing three months of isolation and some humiliation, the man who has been accused of triggering a political landmine by allegedly “going out of brief in his statements” has challenged the action of state government Senior IAS officer Dr Arun Kumar, Principal Secretary to then Governor SK Sinha, has filed a petition before the Central Administrative Tribunal against his attachment with the General Administration Department. Notices have been issued to the state government, through Chief Secretary, before taking a decision in the case. Being in the eye of storm for very long, Dr Arun Kumar landed in soup when he allegedly said in his June 17 Press Confe...   READ MORE   This Saturday, see rare history in making TRAIN IN KASHMIR 10/9/2008 6:42:13 PM EARLY TIMES REPORT JAMMU, Oct 8: This Saturday when Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh boards a train from Nowgam for a small distance to Badgam, a new chapter will go into the history of Indian railways. Valley will see first train chugging across but connecting Kashmir by rail with rest of the country still remains a dream. An aesthetic and comfort marvel of Indian Railways, the Kashmir Valley is all set to have one of the most beautiful and comfortable trains of country chugging between its northern most part –Baramulla and the southern most township of Qazigund. Though the inaugural run is over a small distance as the complete rail line is not yet ready. However, the dream of integrat...   READ MORE   Govt decides to restrict exit polls till final phase 10/9/2008 6:41:33 PM AGENCIES NEW DELHI, Oct 8: In an effort to ensure free and fair poll which are generally spread over several phases, government on Wednesday decided to restrict publication of exit polls till the final phase of voting in an election. A meeting of the Union Cabinet gave its approval to the proposal to restrict publication of exit polls till the last poll in an election is over, Finance Minister P Chidambaram told reporters here. The meeting gave its nod to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1951, for this purpose. "Restriction on telecasting of exit polls would enable the voters to exercise their right to vote without being influenced by the projection of telecast after one pha...   READ MORE   Assam death toll 51; shoot-at-sight continues 10/9/2008 6:41:13 PM AGENCIES UDALGURI, Oct 8: The death toll mounted to 51 in Assam's violence-scarred Udalguri and Darrang districts with the recovery of 11 bodies on Tuesday of victims of clashes between illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and indigenous people since Friday. Official sources said three bodies were recovered from Panbari area of Darrang district, while two bodies each were found from Paschim Hahiligaon in Tangla area and Mazbat, besides four from Kalaigaon, Rajapukhuri and Jhargaon areas of Udalguri district. The bodies were recovered from villages burnt down when search operations were launched for survivors and bodies. IGP (Law and Order) Bhaskarjyoti Mahanta told reporters here that of th...   READ MORE   123 pact being signed on Oct 10 10/9/2008 6:40:50 PM AGENCIES NEW DELHI, Oct 8: With US President George W. Bush expected to sign the bill enabling civilian nuclear cooperation with India later tonight, New Delhi and Washington are readying to ink the 123 pact later this week - the final step that will reopen atomic trade between the two countries after a gap of over three decades. "The 123 pact will be signed Friday afternoon or Saturday morning," a highly placed official source told the media in New Delhi, pleading anonymity. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will formally ink the 123 agreement that will implement the landmark atomic pact accord allowing trade in nuclear reactors, fuel ...   READ MORE   Three versions on IM encounter 10/9/2008 6:40:22 PM ET DESK JAMMU, Oct 8: The Police and Security claims of having foiled two Indian Mujahideen terrorists’ to Pakistan by killing them in Kupwara have run into doubts as Kerala Police has denied anyone from the state killed in Kashmir. The killing of two suspected terrorists in the Kashmir Valley this week has led to three versions. While officials in Kashmir say the two were from Kerala, intelligence sources in Delhi believe only one was from the state. The Kerala Police is denying all links. The only certainty is that the two terrorists killed in Kashmir's Lolab Valley in Kupwara district, about 130 km from the summer capital Srinagar, were from the Lashkar-e-Taiba. Kashmir's Inspector...   READ MORE   2 Addl SPs,52 DYSPs transferred 10/9/2008 6:39:37 PM EARLY TIMES REPORT JAMMU, Oct 8: Government today ordered transfers and postings of the two Addl SPs and fifty two DYSPs.According to the government order Amit Kumar IPS ASP awaiting order of posting is posted as SDPO Bakshi Nagar Jammu against a clear vacancy Mohit Gupta IPS ASP awaiting order to posting is posted as SDPO Mendhar Poonch vice Sanjay Singh Rana Mohd Yousuf Parray DYSP IR 9th Bn is transferred and posted as DYSP CID CI Baramulla against a clear vacancy Atul Sharma SDPO Akhnoor is transferred and posted as DYSP Vigilance against a clear vacancy Manzoor Ahmad DYSP JKAP 8th Bn (SSR Handwara) is transferred and posted as DYSP DAR Handwara against a clear vacancy Khalil Po...   READ MORE

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