SRINAGAR: The death of people killed in ongoing unrest in Kashmir has risen to 73 after a minor drowned in river jehlum in Srinagar during police chase.
The authorities today again imposed curfew in some parts of the Valley to foil protests while hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has asked stakeholders not to meet All Party Delegation (APD), which is scheduled to arrive in the State on Sunday.
Body of 12-year-old boy Danish Sultan Suroo, a class 7th student, was fished out from Jehlum river near Kreshbal area of Parimpora in outskirts of Srinagar today.
The boy alongwith three other youth had jumped into river in Parimpora area yesterday when police and paramilitary were chasing them during clashes in the area.
The three boys swam to safety but Danish got drowned and his body was fished out from water today.
Thousands of people in Parimpora area took to roads after Danish’s body was retrieved today. Chanting pro-freedom, pro-Pakistan and anti-India slogans, the protestors clashed with the police and paramilitary personnel, who fired tear smoke shells to disperse them. The clashes continued for some time.
Later, he was buried in martyrs’ graveyard Eidgah, where thousands of people attended his funeral prayers.
With Danish’s death, the death toll of people killed in ongoing unrest triggered by killing of 21-year-old Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8 has risen to73. Over 8500 civilians and more than 4000 security men have been injured in the clashes between youth and security personnel during last 56 days.
The authorities, meanwhile, re-imposed curfew in parts of Valley today to foil protests.
A police official said curfew was imposed in Srinagar, towns of Anantnag, Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Baramulla today.
The cops enforced tough curfew in curfew-hit areas and did not allow people to venture out of homes and offer Friday prayers. The Friday prayers were disallowed in historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar and many other mosques in the Valley. It was for the 8th consecutive week that no Friday prayers were offered in Jamia and many other mosques.
Youth at many places in uptown Srinagar, North Kashmir, South Kashmir and Central Kashmir took to roads and staged protest demonstrations. Chanting pro-freedom and anti-India slogans, the protestors clashed with police and paramilitary personnel. The cops fired pellets and tear smoke shells to disperse the stone pelting protestors.
Over 200 people were injured in clashes across the Valley. Of the injured, dozens were hit by pellets and referred to Srinagar hospitals for specialized treatment.
A police spokesman said 35 stone pelting incidents were reported from Srinagar, Sopore, Baramulla, Bandipora, and Kupwara in North Kashmir and Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam in South Kashmir.
Geelani asks stakeholders not to meet All Party delegation
Two days before arrival of All Party delegation (APD) to Jammu and Kashmir, hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has asked the stakeholders not to meet the delegation.
“The Indian parliamentary delegation is coming to Kashmir after passing a resolution that Kashmir an integral part of India. Therefore this delegation neither has mandate nor the intention to resolve the dispute of Jammu and Kashmir,” 86-year-old Geelani said.
The APD headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will arrive on a two-day visit to State on Sunday to talk to mainstream politicians, traders and other groups and individuals on the prevailing unrest in the Kashmir.
“We suggest to all stakeholders to refrain from engaging in this ‘meaningless exercise’ of meeting this delegation,” said Geelani, who alongwith separatist leaders Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, is spearheading the ongoing unrest in the Valley.
He said Indian parliamentarians should convene a special session of parliament to accept the “disputed nature” of Jammu and Kashmir to pave the way for holding “referendum in whole of the state that existed in 1947 to settle this issue permanently, peacefully and democratically.”
The traders of Kashmir today also decided not to meet the All-Party delegation saying such “half-hearted” measures won’t solve any purpose.
“Kashmir Inc, being apolitical, would talk to the AP delegation only if they talk to the united Hurriyat leadership. It has become a ritual for the New Delhi to send a team to Kashmir every time human rights abuse scaled new heights in the region,” they said.
They said it is the third visit of Home Minister but again with a half-hearted attitude and unwillingness to realise the complexity of the issue.