Though the government as well as the separatist leadership had announced relaxation in curfew and shutdown respectively, angry youth on Tuesday defied the call and imposed shutdown in Srinagar. As per KNC correspondent, hundreds of angry youth took out a procession in several Srinagar areas, including Karan Nagar, Sarai Balla, Jahangir Chowk, Batamaloo and other localities and imposed shutdown. Asking shopkeepers, though very few like Kirana shops owners had opened their shops, to down their shutters, the angry youth, most of them masked, stopped the private vehicles from moving ahead. “Today is hartal, why are you moving in vehicles,” they told the vehicles owners.The protesting youth took out a procession from Karan Nagar, and marched towards Jahangir Chowk, Maharaja Bazar, Sarai Bala, Magarmal Bagh and Batamaloo and imposed shutdown in these areas.The youth also erected temporary barricades on the roads to stop the vehicular movement in the areas.
After some time, police swung into action and chased away the youth.The joint leadership including Hurriyat (G) chairman, Syed Ali Geelani, Hurriyat (M) chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chairman, Muhammad Yasin Malik Hurriyat and JKLF leadership had announced relaxation in shutdown from 2 pm. But the youth defied that. The youth also defied the relaxation in curfew which was announced by the government.Earlier, the Deputy Commissioner Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Lone told KNS that no restrictions were imposed in any part of Srinagar today.In old city localities, as soon as curfew was lifted, youth staged protests against the civilian killings in Kashmir.
As the protests started in Srinagar areas including Safa Kadal, Kak Sarai, Saida Kadal, Rainawari and other areas, forces swung into action to disperse the protesters who in return pelted stones on them at many places.
“Police fired tear smokes hells to disperse the agitated youth,” witnesses said.“Nine youth were injured due to pellets in old city area. These injured were admitted in the hospital today,” doctors in SMHS told KNS.In some old city areas, agitated youth stopped ambulances and thrashed males doctors and asked females doctors to walk 1 kilometer by foot, doctors and nurses who were travelling in the ambulance told KNS.“Some doctors were traveling from SKIMS to their homes, but were not allowed to move,” they said.Reports said that songs eulogizing slain civilians were reverberating in local Masjids at several places while the residents of Sakidafar offered Zuhar (afternoon) prayers on the road to mark a protest against the civilian killings in the Valley.Curfew was relaxed in Srinagar after 17 consecutive days on Tuesday. It was clamped soon after protests started in the Valley against the killing of a Hizbul Mujahideen commander, Burhan Muzaffar Wani on July 8 in a gunfight in Bumdoora area of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district.Mobile phones and internet services continue to remain suspended from past 12 days in the Valley while only BSNL Broadband and post-paid services are being allowed to operate. Train services also remained suspended.At least 50 civilians were killed while more than 2000 sustained injuries during the current unrest in Kashmir.The unrest continues for the 18th day today following the killing of Hizb commander, Burhan Muzaffar Wani, by forces in Bumdoora village of Kokernag in Anantnag district on July 8. (KNS)