Valley shuts on Burhan’s death anniv In Hizb pics of men with guns, missing kin of an IPS officer
YATRA SUSPENDED Police impose curfew in response to separatists’ call for a strike
JAMMU: Normal life was disrupted in Kashmir in response to a strike called by separatists to mark the second death anniversary of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani while authorities imposed restrictions in parts of the Valley.
Clashes between the security forces and groups of youths trying to defy the official restrictions occurred at some places in Tral area, the ancestral town of Wani, who was killed in an encounter in Kokernag area of Anantnag district on July 8, 2016.
Security forces used tear smoke shells to chase away the protesting youths at some places in south Kashmir areas.
The Amarnath pilgrimage was also suspended for a day following the call for a shutdown.
“In view of law and order situation in south Kashmir where three civilians died in clashes with security forces on Saturday and militant Burhan Wani’s death anniversary, no fresh batch of pilgrims was allowed from Yatri Niwas base camp in Jammu on Sunday,” said an official at the Niwas control room.
Only pilgrims already in Baltal and Pahalgam will be allowed to move towards the cave shrine.
Mobile internet services were suspended throughout Kashmir as a precautionary measure, while security forces were deployed in strength at sensitive places across the Valley to avoid any untoward incident.
Restrictions have been imposed in five police station areas of Nowhatta, Khanyar, Rainawari, Safakadal and Maharajgunj of Srinagar’s old city areas. The official said restrictions were imposed in Pulwama and Tral townships of Pulwama district in south Kashmir as well as precautionary measures to maintain law and order.
Separatists had given a call for a strike on Sunday across Kashmir on the second death anniversary of the Hizbul commander.
Wani’s killing had triggered massive violent protests that left nearly 100 dead and countless more blinded by pellet fire.
Separatists under the banner of Joint Resistance Leadership asked people to observe Sunday as a black day following the kill- ing of three youth, including a girl, in firing by security forces.
The police said public transport was off the roads, while a few private cars and auto-rickshaws were seen plying in some parts of Srinagar.
Senior separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq were placed under house arrest while Muhammad Yasin Malik was taken into preventive custody in Srinagar on Friday and remains in custody. SRINAGAR : On the second death anniversary of Hizbul Mujahideen militant commander Burhan Wani, the outfit Sunday flooded social media with pictures of over one and a half-dozen youth, who have allegedly joined the organisation in the past few months.
The pictures include that of Shams ul Haq Mengnoo, who was pursuing bachelor’s degree in Unani medicine in Srinagar, and is the brother of an IPS officer posted in the North-east. Shams, in his 20s, had gone missing on May 22 and is seen holding a gun with ‘Burhan Sani (Burhan, the second)’ written across it.
SP Shailendra Kumar Mishra, since transferred from Shopian, had on June 28 told HT about possibilities that Shams may have joined the militants. SP Sandeep Chaudhary, said he was not authorised to talk to the media.
The pictures include a dozen names from south Kashmir’s Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag and Pulwama, four from north Kashmir’s Kupwara, Handwara, and Baramulla, and one from central Kashmir’s Budgam.
A senior officer said it was all part of propaganda from the militants’ side. “It is part of their activity to release such pictures particularly when they were not able to make any impact on Wani’s second death anniversary,” the officer said, wishing not to be named. One of them is a resident of Kulgam, who has done his masters in English and was reportedly pursuing PHD outside before joining militancy.
Another picture is that of Irfan Rashid Dar, a 22-year-old special police officer from Pulwama, who went missing from Pampore along with his rifle on June 26.
The youth’s apparent picture carrying a gun with his name and code name Chota Ghaznavi shows his date of getting active as June 27. Pictures of Awantipora youth Tawseef Ahmad Thokar, who the picture claims is an MSC in mathematics, and another of Adfar Fayaz, have also gone viral.