J&K

India: JK Congress opposes new land laws; PDP stages protest

Srinagar, Oct 28 (PTI) The Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Congress on Wednesday joined the other mainstream parties in opposing the new land laws notified by the Centre for the union territory.

"The Congress party rejects the new land laws and vows to fight for the protection of people's rights," JKPCC president Ghulam Ahmad Mir said while addressing a public gathering in the Gurez area of Bandipora district.

India: 3 senior PDP leaders resign from party

Srinagar, Oct 26 (PTI) Three PDP leaders from the Jammu region resigned from the party following a statement by its president Mehbooba Mufti regarding the national flag, PDP sources said here on Monday.

Senior leaders T S Bajwa, Hassan Ali Waffa and Bed Mahajan have resigned from the PDP, they said.

The trio was unhappy with Mehbooba's statement about not holding the tricolour till Jammu and Kashmir's special status, including its separate state flag, is restored, the sources said.

India: Protesters try to hoist national flag at PDP office

Jammu, Oct 25 (PTI) Protesting against PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti's remarks on the national flag, a group of youths took out a march outside the party office on Sunday and tried to hoist the tricolour atop the building but were stopped by police.

The incident came days after the Peoples Democratic Party president said she is not interested in contesting elections or holding the tricolour till the constitutional changes enforced on August 5 last year are rolled back.

India: BJP demands Mehbooba's arrest for 'seditious' remarks

Jammu, Oct 24 (PTI) The Jammu and Kashmir BJP has demanded PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti's arrest for her "seditious" remarks, wherein she said she would only hold the tricolour when the flag of the erstwhile state is restored.

The BJP said "no power on earth" can either hoist the state flag again or restore Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted a special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

India: SSDF holds protest against PDP president in Jammu

Jammu, Oct 24 (PTI) Dozens of Shiv Sena Dogra Front (SSDF) activists on Saturday staged a protest here against PDP president Mehbooba Mufti for her remarks that she would only hold the tricolour when the flag of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir is restored.

Led by SSDF's president Ashok Gupta, the protesters holding tricolour in their hands assembled at Rani Park and raised slogans against the former chief minister besides setting ablaze her pictures.

Indian Army hands over PLA soldier in Ladakh: Chinese defence ministry

Beijing, Oct 21 (PTI) The Indian Army on Wednesday handed over a Chinese soldier who was apprehended in eastern Ladakh to China's People's Liberation Army (PLA), the Chinese Defence Ministry said.

The Chinese soldier was apprehended by the Indian Army in the Demchok sector of eastern Ladakh on Monday after he had "strayed" across the Line of Actual Control (LAC), an incident that comes amid a massive deployment of troops by the two militaries in the region following the border standoff since May.

India: Farooq Abdullah appears before ED in alleged money laundering case again, says another attempt to browbeat opposition

Srinagar, Oct 21 (PTI) Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate for the second time in three days on Wednesday in connection with a multi-crore scam in the JK Cricket Association, with his National Conference terming the summons "yet another attempt to browbeat" the opposition.

Abdullah, who turns 84 on Wednesday, appeared before the ED's regional office in Rajbagh in the Civil Lines area of the city in the morning. He was earlier questioned in the case for over six hours on Monday.

India: Pulwama boy tops NEET exam from J-K

Srinagar, Oct 17 (PTI) A teenager from militancy-infested south Kashmir's Pulwama district has topped the NEET examination from the Union Territory despite internet connectivity issues in most parts of the valley since over a year.

Basit Bilal Khan (18) secured 695 marks out of 720 in the NEET exam, the result of which was declared on Friday.

Khan, hailing from Ratnipora village in Pulwama, said while he worked very hard for the competitive examination, frequent internet outages and slow network speed created a lot of hardships.

Indian Govt amends J&K Panchayati Raj Act

Srinagar, Oct 17 (PTI) The government on Saturday amended the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act to provide for setting up of District Development Councils in each district which will have directly elected members, marking the implementation of the entire 73rd Amendment Act in the union territory, an official spokesman said here.

The District Development Councils (DDCs) of each district shall have 14 constituencies after their delimitation by the respective deputy commissioners, the spokesman said.

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