Valley protests claim 7 lives, 250 hurt
PTI
SRINAGAR, AUG 2
A fresh wave of protests in the Kashmir valley today claimed seven lives and left 250 injured as police opened fire to disperse rampaging mobs who indulged in stone-pelting, attacked government buildings and looted weapons from police.
Defying curfew, stone-pelting protesters took to the streets in several places and attacked police stations and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camps in the valley where 22 people have been killed and over 500 injured, including 200 security force personnel, in violence since last Friday.
One protester was killed in police firing after agitators attacked a police post and attempted to set it afire and another perished late tonight in Kulgam district. In adjacent Sangam in Anantnag district, one person was killed when CRFP personnel retaliated to heavy stone throwing at their camp, police said, adding another person died in a stampede following the firing.
At Kakpora, in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, police opened fire on a group of stone-pelting protesters who were indulging in ransacking, killing one of them.
One person was killed in Kralpora in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district when police fired on a mob which looted arms from a police post. The agitators managed to flee with four rifles.
Protesters this afternoon set afire all the four buildings in a police station at Rajpura in Pulwama district injuring 20 people.
“Rampaging mobs violated curfew restrictions at various places in Kakapora, Pulwama, Budgam, Anantnag, Kulgam and Kupwara destroying police and public properties,” police department said in a statement.
Earlier in the day, protesters set afire two government offices and a railway structure in central Budgam district. Three protesters were injured there as police tried to contain the violence.
A person identified as Tariq Ahmed, who was hit by a teargas shell three days back in Bijbehara in south Kashmir, succumbed to his injuries in a hospital here.
Meanwhile, the Centre today rallied behind Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in handling the situation in the Kashmir Valley and indicated it is committed to carrying out political initiatives for which peace is a prerequisite.
Arriving in New Delhi this morning, Omar called on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the current unrest in the Valley and find an administrative and political way out.
He briefed the meeting in which all the members of the Cabinet Committee of Security (CCS) including Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister P Chidambaram, Defence Minister A K Antony and External Affairs Minister S M Krishna were present on the latest turn of events in Kashmir which witnessed a spurt in violence.
A pained Congress president Sonia Gandhi also voiced concern at the fresh violence and said there were elements with “ulterior motives” that were instigating the attacks. She wanted these elements to be identified and brought to book.
Omar said said Jammu and Kashmir is a political situation which needs political handling. “It requires a political package more than an economic package,” he told newsmen after wrapping up his meetings before returning to Srinagar.
He also said curfew will be implemented strictly and sought additional paramilitary forces especially the Rapid Action Force to deal with street protesters.
“Jammu and Kashmir is a political situation. It needs political handling. It requires a political package more than an economic package. By political package, I mean dealing with issues like Armed Forces Special Powers Act, footprint of the security forces, rehabilitation package for youngsters who are across the line of control and compensation for victims of the ongoing trouble.
“We discussed at length the situation prevailing in the valley and the need for such steps to be taken building consensus was that the pre-requisite for any sort of initiatives in the State was some semblance of normalcy,” the chief minister said.
Official sources said the Centre was willing to kickstart political initiatives in J and K including talks with separatists but wanted violence to end first.
The sources said that the Centre has ruled out any change in leadership in the State and promised all assistance to the chief minister.
