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Kidnapped boy found dead

     Hoshiarpur: The dead body of 16-year-old Abhi Verma, who was kidnapped on Sunday, was found in the fields of Alawalpur village in the adjoining Jalandhar district this morning. Abhi, who was the son of a local jeweller, was kidnapped for a ransom of Rs 50 lakh from Hoshiarpur on Sunday. Punjab police has arrested the two accused involved in the kidnapping, they have been identified as Varinder Singh, alias Vicky, and Jasvir Singh. Both of them are property dealers in Hoshiarpur. "The accused had planned the kidnapping of the boy for ransom as Jasvir Singh had to pay some money to Varinder Singh," informed the IG (Jalandhar Range) S K Sharma. Preliminary interrogation has revealed that the boy, after kidnapping, was brought to Jasvir's residence, where they gave him an injection which resulted in his death. When they realised that the boy died, they threw the body in a nearby field of Alawalpur village in the adjoining Jalandhar district, the IG said. Some locals found the daead body in Alawapur at around 0930 hours, he added.

PM arrives in Kerala on two-day visit (Go To Top)

     Kochi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived here today on a two-day visit to the state. He is scheduled to address the state cabinet and would be laying the foundation stone for the country's first International Container Transhipment Terminal (ICTT) project in Kochi tomorrow and would also inaugurate the work on the second phase expansion of the National Thermal Power corporation (NTPC) at Kayamkulam in tomorrow. The PM will then leave for New Delhi in the IAF plane at 2 pm from the naval airport.

Centre team visits Kashmir to rehabilitate Pandits (Go To Top)

     Srinagar: A high-level Centre team visited Kashmir to rehabilitate hundred thousands of Hindus who had migrated to other places in northern parts of the country after rebellion broke out in 1989. The team found that over 80 percent of the lands and properties of Kashmiri Hindus has been disposed off through fair and unfair means. While many Pandits have sold off their properties, some deserted houses lie in dilapidated state and still other properties have changed hands, sometimes occupied by security personnel. The recent mushrooming of shopping complexes in the once Hindu dominated areas have raised alarm bells among the authorities. Hakam Mohammed Hassan, state's revenue and rehabilitation minister, said they have directed the local officials to make a list of the properties of the Hindus within two months, which could speedup the process of rehabilitation in the area. He said: "According to the survey, above 80 percent of the properties have been grabbed either by legal or illegal means. I have told the authorities here in Jammu and Kashmir to make an inventory within two months time showing how many immovable properties belonging to the Kashmiri Hindus are there, how many of them have been taken away and how many they sold." Hassan said that the state government has submitted a rehabilitation plan to the Centre government. In the first phase of the process, 110 flats have been constructed in Sheikhupura area of Budgam district at a cost of 200 million rupees. The government is also in the process of identifying land in Pulwama and Anantnag districts.

     The Muslims who have bought most of the lands once owned by the Pandits have welcomed the rehabilitation. "If the Kashmiri Hindus decide to come back, then it is good for us. It will be very nice. But the government should set aside some land where they can build their houses because their previous land and houses have been sold," said Shoukat Ameen. Last month, a Centre team had visited a migrant camp in New Delhi to assess the problems faced by the Hindus forced out of their homes due to continuing rebel violence in the Muslim-dominated valley. The Kashmiri Pandits have been living in dingy refugee camps after they fled the bloody rebellion in the picturesque valley since 1989. Pandits have accused the federal government of neglecting their development and demand federally administered zones in Kashmir for their community. According to an estimate, more than 350,000 Pandits have migrated from the Valley over the last 15 years following a spate of killings by extremists.

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