Two persons were killed and scores others injured as fresh protests and clashes broke out between irate crowds, mainly youth, and security forces in various parts of Kashmir on Friday despite strict c
Two persons were killed and scores others injured as fresh protests and clashes broke out between irate crowds, mainly youth, and security forces in various parts of Kashmir on Friday despite strict curfew being enforced in all the ten districts of the Valley.
A J&K policeman, Mudasir Ahmed Shah, was critically wounded and six others were injured when targeted with a hand grenade by suspected militants at Yari Pora in southern Kulgam district at 5.30 pm. The area also witnessed intense stone-pelting involving curfew-defying youth, reports said. It added that one head-constable died in hospital later but it has been neither denied nor confirmed by officials, so far.
Official sources said that an Army helicopter was requisitioned to evacuate the injured policemen as protests were underway when the attack took place and attempts to remove them to hospital in ambulance or a police vehicle had failed.
In order to quell a stone-hurling crowd at Yaripora, the police opened fire killing one 18-year-old protester , identified as Sayar Ahmed Kumar, and injuring two others. Residents said that no militant attack took place and that the policemen were injured when some explosive substance they were carrying in a vehicle went off injuring those on board.
A statement issued by the police here in the evening, however, said that officers as well as civilians were injured when militants tossed grenades and opened indiscriminate fire on a police party trying to contain a protest at Yaripora. “Seven personnel and three civilians received gunshot and splinter injuries. One civilian died of militant firing,” it claimed.
Reports from frontier town of Kupwara said that security forces opened fire to disperse a group of protesters when it turned violent in Drugmulla area of the district. One of them identified as Mushtaq Ahmed Ganai was killed and three others were wounded, witnesses and hospital sources said.
Police statement said the “unruly mob” attacked an Army camp at Drugmulla and during ‘tackling the mob three persons were injured and one of them succumbed later.”
14 people were injured in clashes which broke out in the towns of Sopore, Delina and Pattan in neighbouring Baramulla district. Two of them were hit in police firing and the rest sustained injuries due to the use of teargas canisters and pellet guns by security forces against stone-pelting crowds, reports said. In Srinagar, yet another youth who was critically injured in CRPF action against protesters earlier during the week died in hospital on Friday morning, raising the toll to 41. He has been identified as Hilal Ahmed Parray.
One policeman Afroz Ahmed has also been killed and hundreds other security personnel have been injured in weeklong clashes. CRPF’s ADG for J&K, N. Srivastav, said that 1,000 of his men have been injured in stone pelting and other attacks across the Valley since last Saturday.
Police added that the militants targeted a joint party of J&K police and the CRPF also at Natnusa (Kupwara), injuring seven of them. In another incident, militants fired upon the personnel of police station Lolab (also in Kupwara) deployed for law and order duties as a result of which two of them were injured.
“The overall situation throughout the Valley remained under control, although incidents of stone pelting and attacks on security force establishments were reported,” the police statement said. Police claimed, “At many places, militants took shelter and mingled with protesters and then attacked police and CRPF personnel deployed for law and order duties”.
Clashes between irate crowds and security forces were reported also from various other areas of Kupwara, Baramulla and Kulgam and Bandipora, Ganderbal, Shopian, and Pulwama districts, leaving scores of people on both sides injured. During one such incident, a protester was critically wounded in security forces’ firing at Manigam in Ganderbal. Doctors attending on him said that chances of his survival were at minimum as he had been hit in the chest near heart. Police said that near Khaitangan in Baramulla a violent mob attacked an Army party and tried to snatch the weapon. “Two persons were injured in this incident”. Independent reports from the area said that the duo was shot by troops during a violent protest.
Cellular phone services have been snapped partially whereas Internet services are available only on fixed BSNL Broadband and WiFi lines. However, the mobile phone services provided by the BSNL have been spared apparently because these are used also by most government functionaries-ministers, bureaucrats, police higherups. Srinagar’s historic Jamia Masjid was locked and no Friday congregational prayers were allowed. However, a thin weekly congregation was held at Hazratbal mosque and Friday namaz was offered also in isolated places of worship and other mohalla mosques.
The separatists who remained under house arrest or are in ‘preventive’ police custody have extended the strike call initially issued a week ago to mourn and protest the killing of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander, Burhan Muzaffar Wani, by security forces on July 8 have extended it till Monday.
Protests on Friday spread to Chenab valley and twin frontier districts of Rajouri and Poonch in Jammu region but these were held mainly to mourn and condemn large scale killings and injuries caused in security forces firings and other actions in Kashmir Valley. Also, shops and other businesses including those owned by Hindus and other non-Muslims in the towns of Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah in Chenab valley remained shut in protest or express solidarity with the people of Kashmir Valley, reports said.
Official sources here said that in view of the persisting tensions and deteriorating law and order conditions curfew and security restrictions would continue to remain in force in most parts of the Valley and that the situation is being reviewed on hourly basis. ‘If the situation permits, curfew will be relaxed in rotational basis on Saturday in the areas which did not see any violence today (Friday) but no prior announcements for the same would be made for obvious reasons,” a senior police officer said.
Meanwhile, more policemen have come under mob attacks. In one such incident which occurred in summer capital Srinagar, the private Maruti Alto car of a cop was torched and he was severely thrashed by a group of youth in Qamarwari locality. As anger against the security forces and government is at its height following the killing of nearly 40 people in violence, mainly in police firings, a 4,000-strong mob barged into the orchard of a Kashmiri entrepreneur Khurram Mir in Kokernag area in south of the Valley and uprooted or cut down 7,000 fruit bearing trees. This apparently in the belief that he was a supporter of ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) as the apple farm was inaugurated by then Chief Minister and PDP patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed last year.
A mob on Friday torched the private house at Kokernag in which Wani, often referred to as the new-age poster boy of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, was along with two associates trapped and subsequently killed.
Official said that hundreds of policemen and paramilitary personnel have been injured in mob attacks. Hospitals in Srinagar and elsewhere are full of injured civilians; over 400 of them with bullet and pellet injuries above their waist line. Five of those who were hit in their eyes in pellet firing have lost their vision completely, and about 30 are in bad condition. Dr. Sudharshan Khokhar who is heading a 3-member team of Ophthalmologists and surgeon specialists rushed in from Delhi following a request was made to the Central government by Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, earlier this week said, “It is a war like situation here. We have never seen injuries on this scale”.
About 4,000 paramilitary personnel and two fully equipped infantry battalions of Army have been brought to Kashmir Valley from Delhi, Jammu and other parts of the country to supplement the effort by thousands of men from J&K police and already stationed here CRPF aimed at containing situation, officially acknowledged to be “alarming”.
A delegation of opposition National Conference (NC) met Governor N.N. Vohra at Raj Bhawan here to voice it ‘grave concern’ over the increasing incidence of injuries suffered by the Valley youth and even minor boys and girls in pellet gun firings. The delegation led by former minister Ali Muhammad Sagar sought the Govenor’s intervention towards ending the mayhem.
An official spokesman here said that despite curfew being in force and ongoing protests and violent clashes, 9,179 devotees paid obeisance at the cave-shrine of Amarnath. With it the total number of pilgrims who have visited the revered place of worship tucked away in Pahalgam hills has risen to 164,499, so far, this year.
