People offer funeral prayers for the BJP state vice-president Ghulam Mohammad Mir in Veerinag area of Anantnag district on Sunday. Mir was killed by suspected militants. (Photo: PTI)

Srinagar: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday staged a protest demonstration here against the withdrawal of security cover to its workers and other mainstream political activists in Jammu and Kashmir.

Scores of BJP workers led by the party general secretary Ashok Kaul assembled at Srinagar’s Mushtaq Press Enclave to complain that the withdrawal of security by the Governor’s administration has made them vulnerable to militant attacks. Mr. Kaul announced that he will not take any security from the government until and unless the same is provided to other political workers as well.

“We’ve written a formal letter to the additional director general (security) of the J&K police to demand foolproof security to the BJP workers. I as general secretary of the party will surrender my security till this demand is met,” he said.

On Saturday night, a local BJP leader Gul Muhammad Mir was shot dead by suspected militants in  Anantnag district. The BJP has alleged that the police had some time ago withdrawn security cover to 60-year-old Mir.  Mr. Kaul claimed that he had personally contacted SSP Anantnag and SHO Verinag to request them not to withdraw his security.

However, Governor Satya Pal Malik had on Monday said that the withdrawal of security from certain erstwhile protected people and the killing of political workers in the Valley cannot be interlinked.