Curfew re-imposed in Kashmir towns

SRINAGAR - Hundreds of protesters defied security restrictions to march through the streets in north Kashmir’s Palhallan town even as authorities reimposed curfew in Kupwara and Pulwama towns Saturday morning after violence a day earlier.

A senior police officer said curfew had to be reimposed in the frontier north Kashmir’s Kupwara and south Kashmir’s Pulwama towns following Friday evening violence.

Policemen and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers were deployed in strength early in the morning to enforce the curfew.

Violence had rocked the twin towns after Friday prayers during which several people, including policemen, were wounded.

“Curfew has been imposed in Kupwara and Pulwama as a precautionary measure,” the police officer said.

Protesters took to the streets in Palhallan town on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road shouting pro-freedom slogans. They tried to block the highway and indulged in heavy stone pelting on police who responded by firing teargas and baton charges.

Authorities had imposed curfew-like restrictions in Palhallan after mob violence Friday. A police spokesman said the local station house officer (SHO) was injured “after an unidentified terrorist among the protesting mob fired at him”.

Authorities lifted restrictions from Srinagar. However, shops, businesses, educational institutions, banks, government offices continued to remain shut.

Skeletal private transport was plying in the Civil Line area here.

Mobs indulged in stone pelting in the Old City where the authorities deployed police and CRPF to maintain law and order.