JOIN USThe strike call by separatists demanding return of bodies of Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru and JKLF founder Mohammad Maqbool Bhat evoked mixed response on Thursday.
The day passed off peacefully in Srinagar and other major towns of Kashmir with authorities having deployed contingents of police and paramilitary CRPF to scuttle any protests.
Hundreds of policemen donning riot gear were deployed in sensitive areas of Srinagar and other towns to thwart any possible protest. Shops, business establishments, fuel stations and other commercial establishments remained partially closed while skeletal public transport was plying on the roads. Government offices and a few other institutions remained open.
In old city areas, the security personnel patrolled the lanes and by-lanes. In volatile regions like Nowhatta, Safakadal, Rajouri Kadal, Nawakadal, Zainakadal, Rainawari, and MR Gunj, the forces took extra measures to deploy more men to maintain law and order.
In uptown city, partial shutdown was observed while private transport plied on the roads normally. Reports said that strike call by Majlis Mashawarat (Consultation Committee), an amalgamation of separatist groups, evoked partial response in other districts of the Valley.
Government offices and banks remained open but educational institutions remained closed in some parts of the Valley. A senior police official said the day passed off peacefully with no untoward incidents.
Majlis, which has JKLF, both factions of Hurriyat Conference, Kashmir Bar Association and Dukhtaran-e-Millat as constituents, had called for a complete shutdown in the Valley when it issued a weekly protest calendar on Sunday.
The Majlis was formed in the wake of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru’s execution inside Tihar Jail on February 9. The main demand of the Majlis is to seek return of mortal remains of Afzal and Bhat.
Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front founder Bhat was hanged and buried inside Tihar Jail on February 11, 1984, after he was convicted for murdering a police officer.