JOIN USThe scale of violence went up as protesters defied curfew at several places across the Valley, forcing the police to open fire, burst tear gas shells and resort to baton charge. Fourteen people were injured, according to the authorities here.
The intensity of the anger was such that the protesters ransacked the minister’s house before trying to set it on fire. The police opened fire, burst teargas shells and cane-charged the mob. Ten people were injured, six of them in the firing.
On Saturday, after Id prayers, hundreds of demonstrators poured out on the streets of Kashmir’s towns and set on fire police installations and other government property, forcing the state administration to clamp down curfew on the Valley.
Violence swept through the Valley on Sunday, two days before a crucial Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) meeting which is likely to take a decision on the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), an issue that appears to have split the UPA government with differences reportedly cropping up between the Home and Defence ministries.
Defence Minister A K Antony maintained in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday that there were no differences in the CCS on the continuing use of AFSPA in Jammu and Kashmir, but admitted “there may be various points of view.”
Antony’s statement assumes significance in the wake of reported differences in the CCS over the partial withdrawal of the AFSPA in Kashmir as part of the Centre’s package to break the current impasse.|
In the Valley on Saturday, the security forces fired in the air to push back demonstrators.
There were no reports of any deaths, but three civilians and two police officials were injured in the clashes which were sparked off during a protest march that Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference, led from Eidgah to Lal Chowk after the conclusion of Id prayers.
The police registered three cases against the Mirwaiz on the charge of inciting the people to violence. He is likely to be arrested. The Mirwaz, however, refuted the charges, claiming that his protest march on Saturday was peaceful. “We have nothing to do with violence. The government’s hand in crushing the ongoing agitation cannot be ruled out,” the Mirwaiz said, demanding an impartial probe into the violent incidents.
An FIR was registered against the Mirwaiz at Shaheedgunj police station in Srinagar city under various Sections of Ranbir Penal Code, including for criminal conspiracy, waging war against the state and wantonly giving provocation to cause riots, police sources said.
Another case was registered against the moderate Hurriyat leader and four others at Safakadal police station in the old city. Senior hardline Hurriyat leader Nissar Hussain Rather was booked for making a provocative speech at Clock Tower in Lal Chowk.
Reacting to the Hurriyat leader’s assertion, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the Mirwaiz had betrayed his trust by inciting the people to violence. “A close aide of the separatist leader approached my office, seeking permission for the march on the assurance that it would be peaceful. We allowed the march but it turned violent and people burnt government buildings,” he said. On his part, the Mirwaiz said no body from his organisation approached the government for permission to undertake the march.
The death toll in police firing rose to 71 on Sunday with 34-year-old Mohamma Ashraf, a resident of Palhalan Pattan, succumbing to his injuries.
A shocked Peerzada Sayeed left his residence amid tight security cover and reached Srinagar. Another person was seriously injured in police action at Littapora in south Kashmir as protesters blocked the Srinagar-Jammu road.