Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, July 3: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today said that he will continue to press for the revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) despite the attack on Army convoy in Srinagar in which 8 Army personnel were killed last week.
After inaugurating three-day National Summit organised by National Rural Health Mission here at SKICC, the Chief Minister said he would continue the discussion with the Centre on the issue of partial revocation of AFSPA in the State. “I will only say that our discussions about AFSPA will continue,” he added.
Omar said that some incidents in the Valley over the past 10 days have lent credence to voices both against and for revocation of AFSPA in the State. “I wont talk about AFSPA right now. Last 10 days, we have seen two incidents which have given evidence both for presence and revocation of AFSPA,” he added.
Chief Minister said the advocates of continuing AFSPA in the State cite the example of attack on Army convoy in Srinagar last week and those who want it cite the example of Sumbal firing incident.
“They say that AFSPA cannot be revoked when such incidents take place. Those who want the Act to go cite the Sumbal incident saying there was wrong use of powers which led to death of two youth. If there was no AFSPA it would not have happened,” he said.
On killing of two youth on Sunday at Sumbal, Omar said investigations are going on. “An FIR has been filed, investigation is ongoing, whatever arrests are taking place are on the basis of investigation,” he said.
Earlier in his address at the NRHM function, the Chief Minister came down on news channels for what he said trying to blow out of proportion the recent militancy related incidents in Kashmir. “No matter how much the media might try to highlight Kashmir as a no-go area, there is a vast difference between what we see on popular news channels and what actually happens on ground,” he said.
Omar said he didn’t wish to assert that there are no problems in Kashmir. “We do have. It will only be a fool who will live in denial of that but the gap between the problem, as it is sought to be projected, and the problem as it exists, I think it is clear to those of you who have made an effort to visit,” he said.
In order to avoid repeat of Uttarakhand disaster, Chief Minister said the State Government will not allow uncontrolled access to unregistered pilgrims to Amarnath and Vaishnodevi shrines.
Omar told reporters: “Whether it is Amarnathji or Vaishnodeviji, we are not going to give uncontrolled access. So what happened in Uttarakhand cannot happen here. Still, we are taking all necessary precautions.”
The Chief MInister said Uttarakhand situation cannot be compared to the ongoing Amarnath yatra in Kashmir as access control system is being implemented in letter and spirit. “In Uttarakhand, people had full liberty to go wherever they wanted. Here we have an access control system and for the first time, we have sent back 15,000 unregistered pilgrims back,” he said.
Omar said this year Government is strict on unregistered yatris. “This year, after what happened in Uttarakhand, we have decided we will not allow any unregistered pilgrims as they come without health checks and there is no control over them as well,” he said.
Chief Minister said that during the past several years, the unregistered pilgrims would reach here, raise hue and cry and they would be allowed to proceed for the yatra.
Omar said the pilgrims were welcome to the State but they should follow the procedure laid down by the concerned authorities. “I want to tell the intending pilgrims not to come here without registration. We have opened a counter in Srinagar. If they want to go for yatra, they should get themselves registered and then only proceed,” he added.
Earlier, Omar said that the declining sex ratio in Jammu and Kashmir was a matter of concern and all the steps required to set it right will be taken by the State Government. “I have been told we are contesting those figures. Whatever comes out and till the figures change, I will accept it as gospel truth that we have a problem and we have to do something about it,” he added.
Omar said he would have accepted female feoticide from Punjab could have caught up with parts of Jammu and Kashmir bordering that state but he would not believe that such a problem existed in heartland of Kashmir. “But the numbers have shown that problem is in Kashmir also. If the numbers are wrong, so be it. I would rather be on the side of caution and take the numbers as true, till they are proven wrong. We are hoping that with the steps we are taking, this trend can be reversed,” he said.
Omar said religious leaders like Imams, Granthis, Pujaris and Priests can play an important role in curbing the practice of female foeticide.”Government alone cannot do it. If these religious leaders devote some part of their sermons to creating awareness about this issue, it will go a long way in augmenting our efforts,” he added.
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