Strict curfew slapped as three more shot dead
Police and paramilitary troops enforced a strict curfew in Indian Kashmir on Sunday as three protesters were killed.
SRINAGAR:
Police and paramilitary troops enforced a strict curfew in Indian Kashmir on Sunday as three protesters, including a girl, were killed on Sunday in Indian Kashmir, taking to nine the number of young people shot dead by security forces in three days of violent clashes between anti-India protestors and security forces, police said
Riot police were out in large numbers on the streets of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir, and other areas that have witnessed a rolling series of violent protests over the past two months.
“We request residents to stay indoors and not venture out,” police announced through vehicle-mounted public address systems that patrolled the city streets.
The latest casualties mark the deadliest phase in the territory since June 11, when turmoil erupted after a 17-year-old student was killed by a police tear-gas shell.
Sunday’s deaths took place in Pampore town, about 13 kilometres south of Srinagar.
“One protester was killed and four others injured when security forces opened fire at thousands of violent protesters in Pampore,” said a police officer who did not want to be named.
He said one of the injured protesters later succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
Witnesses said security forces again opened fire at a funeral procession of one of the two dead men near Pampore, killing a 17-year-old girl.
Police confirmed the death but said they were collecting details.
The two men were killed when security forces opened fire with rifles when thousands of residents in Pampore defied a strict curfew, blocked the region’s main highway and attacked security personnel.
Residents said they were holding a peaceful protest against Indian rule when security troops fired on them.
The shooting brought even more people out onto the streets. They attacked police with rocks and sticks, witnesses said, and set fire to three government buildings and two vehicles.
A total of 26 civilians, most of them young men in their teens or early 20s, have died in the clashes with security forces.
The latest violence on Friday and Saturday was focused on the northern district of Baramulla, a hotbed of separatism in the valley.
Police said in a statement Sunday that they had been forced to fire on “unruly crowds” in Baramulla “when all other measures to pacify them failed”.
Last week, the Kashmir state government ordered a judicial probe into the recent spate of police shootings. The inquiry will be led by two retired judges and has been tasked with submitting a report within three months. AFP
Published in The Express Tribune, August 2nd, 2010.
Police and paramilitary troops enforced a strict curfew in Indian Kashmir on Sunday as three protesters, including a girl, were killed on Sunday in Indian Kashmir, taking to nine the number of young people shot dead by security forces in three days of violent clashes between anti-India protestors and security forces, police said
Riot police were out in large numbers on the streets of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir, and other areas that have witnessed a rolling series of violent protests over the past two months.
“We request residents to stay indoors and not venture out,” police announced through vehicle-mounted public address systems that patrolled the city streets.
The latest casualties mark the deadliest phase in the territory since June 11, when turmoil erupted after a 17-year-old student was killed by a police tear-gas shell.
Sunday’s deaths took place in Pampore town, about 13 kilometres south of Srinagar.
“One protester was killed and four others injured when security forces opened fire at thousands of violent protesters in Pampore,” said a police officer who did not want to be named.
He said one of the injured protesters later succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
Witnesses said security forces again opened fire at a funeral procession of one of the two dead men near Pampore, killing a 17-year-old girl.
Police confirmed the death but said they were collecting details.
The two men were killed when security forces opened fire with rifles when thousands of residents in Pampore defied a strict curfew, blocked the region’s main highway and attacked security personnel.
Residents said they were holding a peaceful protest against Indian rule when security troops fired on them.
The shooting brought even more people out onto the streets. They attacked police with rocks and sticks, witnesses said, and set fire to three government buildings and two vehicles.
A total of 26 civilians, most of them young men in their teens or early 20s, have died in the clashes with security forces.
The latest violence on Friday and Saturday was focused on the northern district of Baramulla, a hotbed of separatism in the valley.
Police said in a statement Sunday that they had been forced to fire on “unruly crowds” in Baramulla “when all other measures to pacify them failed”.
Last week, the Kashmir state government ordered a judicial probe into the recent spate of police shootings. The inquiry will be led by two retired judges and has been tasked with submitting a report within three months. AFP
Published in The Express Tribune, August 2nd, 2010.