Separatists’ behaviour condemnable, says Omar

NEW DELHI - Decrying Saturday’s violence in Kashmir as “highly condemnable and unfortunate”, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the separatists had “betrayed us” by provoking the mobs to violence.

Omar, who is in New Delhi for deliberations on the Kashmir package, told TV channels that the separatists had triggered unprovoked violence on a day of “festivities and peace”.

The chief minister said separatist leader Yasin Malik had contacted his office and sought approval for protests on Eid day.

“While we permitted peaceful demonstrations, you saw what happened,” Omar said, adding the “whole campaign of the separatists that the security forces have been provoking violence has been exposed”.

“While we allowed peaceful protests, the protesters set fire to two fire department offices and a police crime branch office,” he said.

The chief minister said he had to stay back in Delhi in view of the discussions by the Congress core committee on the Kashmir situation and the expected meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) Monday.