Strike, clashes continue in Valley

Despite lifting of the curfew, clashes continued in Kashmir for the 53rd day in a row on Tuesday.

Reports said 50 people were injured after forces foiled protest rallies in areas of south Kashmir. Amid the shutdown, women protesting at  at various places on the call of separatists, were also held.

Twenty people sustained injuries after security forces tried to foil a protest rally in Wathoo village of Shopian district. Earlier on Tuesday, security forces vandalised the venue where the rally was scheduled and beat up the volunteers who were making arrangements, according to witnesses.

“They also fired teargas shells and pellets on the people who tried to resist their move injuring at least 20,” they said.

In a similar incident in Panzath village in Anantnag district, 10 people sustained injuries. In Dooru area of Anantnag 10 people, including an elderly woman, were injured when security personnel used force to disperse a protest rally.

Reports said six people were injured after forces conducted nocturnal raids in Srandoo village of Kulgam in south Kashmir, beat up inmates and tried to arrest the youths. In Srinagar, clashes erupted between stone-pelting youths and security forces in Batamaloo, Nowhatta and Khanyar areas in which several people were injured.  The house of a senior photo journalist working with an international agency was damaged by forces in Batamaloo area. “I wasn’t home, when the forces attacked my house. Locals told me that they threw stones at my house. It was a joint team of the police and the CRPF. My wife, who isn’t keeping well, fainted,” Danish Ismail, who works with Reuters said.

A police spokesman said curfew has been lifted from Kashmir except in the limits of two police stations of Nowhatta and M R Gunj in Srinagar.

“Greater movement of private and passenger vehicular traffic and people was observed in major areas of the Valley including Srinagar city today (Tuesday),” the police said.

However, despite lifting of the curfew, the police and paramilitary forces were manning the streets across Kashmir, while the Army was deployed at several places along the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. Curfew was lifted on August 29 from most parts of Kashmir. It was lifted from the restive Pulwama town following a gradual improvement in the situation.