Sikhs out in force over militant attack
Mourners attending teacher’s funeral joined by Muslims in protest in Srinagar
Hundreds of Sikhs in Kashmir marched yesterday at the funeral of a teacher from the community killed by suspected militants along with a member of the Hindu community.
Supinder Kour, 46, was shot dead with colleague Deepak Chand in their school on Thursday, the third in a series of attacks claimed by the Resistance Front (TRF) terror group this week that have left seven civilians dead.
The killings in the restive region drew wide condemnation from residents in Kashmir and across the country besides politicians from all sides.
Angry members of the Sikh community carried Kour’s body wrapped in a white shroud along a main street in Srinagar, shouting religious slogans and demanding justice.
Sit-in protest
They were joined by Muslim residents, who form the majority in the region. Sikhs make up around two per cent.
The mourners sat on a silent sit-in outside the civil secretariat in Srinagar along with the body of the slain woman.
The civil secretariat houses the top offices of the government, including those of the Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha and his advisers.
Police tried to intervene to restrain the mourners from carrying out the sit-in outside the civil secretariat. But, sensing the surcharged atmosphere, police did not use force to disperse the procession.
‘Death to TRF’, ‘Bring the killers to justice’, the mourners shouted while carrying the dead body for cremation to the cremation ground situated in Karan Nagar locality of Srinagar.
Officials say 28 civilians, including two labourers, have been killed by militants this year so far.