Kashmir turned into a ghost town
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1 more succumbsDozens injured in CRPF, Army, police beating80 arrestedTroopers loot shops
Mir Tariq/ Bandipora, Baramulla, Aug 26: The entire Kashmir valley was turned into ghost town on the third consecutive day of curfew Tuesday while one person who was critically injured in Hajin on Monday when police and CRPF troopers opened fire on a peaceful process succumbed to his injuries early Tuesday morning.There was no relaxation in the curfew throughout the day in all the 10 districts of Kashmir while locals said paramilitary CRPF troopers beat everyone who came out on the roads.Srinagar the war zone
Srinagar city continued to look like a war zone with the CRPF troopers having erected barricades on the main roads at close distances.Even the by-lanes were not safe as CRPF troopers chased people, young and old, male and female. In the wee hours, the troopers ransacked a baker’s shop at Rambagh near diamond silk factory and ruthlessly beat the people who had gone to collect the bread for the breakfast.“Although the shop is located in a by-lane the troopers asked him why he had opened the shop and defied curfew orders and then without waiting for the answer kicked out the flour inside his shop,” said Muhammad Rajab, an elderly person who watched the proceedings from his window.The troopers throughout the city were seen yelling at the population to come out from their houses and start dingdong battles with them. “The troopers in the old city yelled at us ‘Aao humse maqabal karo’ (Come and fight with us). They continuously kept repeating this,” said Abdul Mohamin. Mohamin said that the troopers pelted stones at the residential houses in the locality throughout the day.He said: “The paramilitary CRPF troopers at Alamgari Bazaar raised slogans ‘Aiyee Aiyee Lashkare Aiyee (Lashkar has come, Lashkar has come) and Goli ke boli ab boliye ge (Now the barrels of gun will speak),” said Mohamin.At Nadiyar Rainwari troopers thrashed a youth, Javid Ahmad Dar, when he was walking all alone in the by-lane. His friend Irfan said that two vehicles of CRPF on finding him alone severally thrashed him. “He was walking in the by-lane when CRPF got down and said to him: ‘Now say Lashkar aiyee Lashkar aiyee’ and started to kick him,” said Irfan.He said as he whined in pain and started to cry, the youth of the area cordoned the two vehicles of the paramilitary troopers. “Seeing the mood of the people, the troopers hurriedly fled from the spot,” said Irfan. “After sometime they returned and pelted stones at the residential houses damaging windowpanes of at least 15 houses.”At Bilal Colony Soura, paramilitary CRPF troopers beat a milk seller and threw his 50 kg of milk on the road when he was distributing milk to the needy people in his residence.Paramilitary CRPF troopers were on a rampage in Saraf Kadal, Nowhatta, Khanyar and beat the inmates, locals said. In Malapora area of Jamia Masjid, troopers barged into the houses of Bashir Ahmad Wani and Abdur Aziz Zargar and beat them to pulp and ransacked their houses.In civil lines area of Nowgam, the troopers took two youth in custody, an eyewitness said. He said: “Both the youth were released but the troopers ran away with their clothes. They were sent home completely naked.”For Owais a Non Resident Kashmiri (NRK) who stays in Saudi Arabia paying a visit to his relatives at Channapora was for the first time since 1993 was a nightmare. “On Sunday I was going to the airport when RR stopped me near Sanat Nagar. They told me to go back. I showed them the ticket which is treated as curfew pass everywhere in the world but they just tore that to pieces,” said a visibly shaken Owais.“They then started to slap me and took away my passport. One RR troopers started to cut it but I pleaded them to at least see and respect the Indian emblem,” he said. Owais said that the RR troopers hurled invectives at him saying, “You want Azaadi. Now we will show what Azaadi is.”He said it was difficult for him to live in this place where there was no value for a human life.Meanwhile policemen at Ram Munshi Bagh station beat another policeman in civvies on Tuesday. According to eyewitnesses Abdul Ahad, a police constable was beaten by another policeman identified as Mohi-ud-Din of Ram Munshi Bagh Police Station when he was heading towards his police station.Hospitals reject juices for patientsThe residents of the city who had raised funds and sent two barrels of juice to the SMHS hospital were disappointed when the hospital officials told them that they cannot take the barrels of juices for the patients because of orders by higher authorities.As the news of patients suffering from want of food reached people in the city, some good Samaritans collected money and sent them two barrels of juice. These good Samaritans sent the two barrels of juice to the hospital through the media men and when at 3.00 pm media men went to the hospital with much difficulty, they were returned dejected by the hospital authorities.SMHS Medical Superintendent, Waseem Quershi returned us dejected, Kashmir Photojournalist Association President Farooq Javed said. “He curtly said that they don’t have the permission to take juices from the common masses. Take them back we don’t want to give any impression that we are running short of anything,” said Javed who had taken two barrels of juice along with other media persons to the hospital.
Another Hajin youth succumbsA youth who was critically injured in Monday’s firing at Hajin Bandipora succumbed early Tuesday morning.Three persons including an aged woman were killed on Monday in firing by Police and troopers at Hajin Bandipora and around 60 injured, some of them critically.A carpet weaver Bashir Ahmed Bahar, 28, son of Muhammad Ramzan of Bahrabad was also injured critically on Monday after he was hit by a bullet.Bahar succumbed to injuries early Tuesday morning, hospital authorities said.Meanwhile, hundreds of people came out on streets in various villages of Bandipora including Hajin, Madvan, Saderkoot, Prang, Saiadaunara, Ajas. The protestors were demanding probe into the killings and unprovoked firing at people.Hajin residents stopped from attending funeralThe residents of Hajin Bandipora district alleged that the district administration, Police and paramilitary CRPF troopers stopped them from participating in the funeral prayers of the four persons who were killed in Monday’s firing at Hajin, Bandipora."Police and CRPF troopers are not allowing us to participate in the funeral prayers," said Showket Ahmed, a resident of the area.Troops loot shopsThe residents of Hajin area of north Kashmir alleged troopers of looting their shops after Monday’s firing here.Around 20 shops have been looted in the market near Khanqa Masjid in Hajin, locals said. The troopers threw dozens of carts of vendors into river Jhelum and burnt several in Hajin market."Besides looting cold drinks worth Rs 20,00, troopers destroyed my shop on Monday," said Muhammad Amin, a shopkeeper. “They killed innocent people and looted products worth thousands of rupees from our shops."Member of Hajin Traders Federation said that one can notice dozens of carts of vendors lying in river Jhelum and several burnt in the Hajn market. “They also damaged hundred of shops by spraying bullets. This should be probed and compensation given to the affected," they said."I requested a trooper not to burn my cart but they would not listen. They set it ablaze and also beat me up to pulp," Abdur Razzaq, a vendor said.Meanwhile, people in various villages like Nadihal Gundpora and Gund Kaiser tried to defy curfew but were pacified by the Magistrate Ghulam Ahmed Khan.Besides raising pro-freedom, pro-Pakistan and anti-Indian slogans, protestors were raising slogans against DC Bandipora who according to protestors had ordered police and troopers to open fire at the peaceful protestors on Monday.40 arrested in nocturnal raids in BaramullaAround 40 persons were arrested in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district during the nocturnal raids by Special Operations Group of Police and Army Monday night.Locals said that the SOG and Army personnel forcibly entered into their houses during the night, beat inmates and arrested the men.“It seemed that police and troopers are not able to come to the grip of things since the successful rallies called by the Jammu Kashmir Coordination Committee. Now they are attacking every Kashmiri because they know everyone participated in these rallies,” said Muhammad Naseem, a resident of Baramulla town. Army, CRPF beat womenfolk in TralThe residents of Chandrigam village in Tral area of south Kashmir on Tuesday alleged that the Army and paramilitary CRPF troopers Monday night entered into their residences and ruthless beat small girls, women, men and youth, looted household goods and damaged the residential houses.Locals said that the Army men and CRPF troopers were furious after Monday’s peaceful demonstration by locals in which they raised pro-freedom slogans.“They forced their entry into our houses during the night and misbehaved with the womenfolk and ruthlessly beat everyone in the houses,” said Muhammad Amin, a resident of Chandrigam.11 injured in Dooru, 40 arrested in IslamabadFive civilians and six paramilitary troopers were injured in day long clashes in Dooru area while troopers of Rashtriya Rifles arrested at least 40 persons in south Kashmir’s Islamabad district. The troopers also broke the window panes of Jamia Masjid Islamabad.Station House Officer Dooru, N S Parihar said 11 persons including six CRPF personnel and 5 civilians were injured in the dingdong battle between locals and paramilitary CRPF personnel.The clashes started early in the morning and continued till 8:30 pm.The RR troopers also forcibly entered into the houses of the locals and arrested 40 youth, residents said.“Besides, they also roughed up the inmates including the womenfolk. Four persons including a woman Ruby were seriously injured in the assault by the RR troopers,” locals said.Earlier, Monday night the residents of Islamabad attacked an Army camp in Kaniwan, 8 km from Bijbehara after the army arrested six youth of the area. Following the attack on the camp the army set all six youth free.Bomb hoax creates panic in GMC JammuPanic gripped Government Medical College, Jammu when a bomb hoax Tuesday evening gave anxious moments to troopers and hundreds of attendants and the patients.Reports said that GMC authority received a call that a bomb had been planted in the hospital following which Medical Superintendent, GMC and CMO called the police. A police team reached GMC Jammu complex at around 5:30 pm soon after the news of the possible presence of a bomb was broken to them by the GMC authorities. The GMC complex was thoroughly checked by the Kennel (dog) Squad for the bomb. “It turned out to be a hoax call. Police squad searched the emergency ward. The police team along with the bomb disposal squad reached the GMC complex within minutes,” said a police official.