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| No letup in stone pelting, protests in Kashmir on Eid | | Pakistani flags waved again | |
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, July 18: There was no let up in stone pelting and protests on Eid-ul-Fitr in the Kashmir Valley, affecting festive celebrations.
After the congregational Eid prayers, roadside protests were witnessed in various areas of Srinagar and in south Kashmir's Anantnag district while police and paramilitary forces resorted to teargas shelling to disperse the mobs.
Children and women who had gone to offer to Eid prayers at Eidgah here could been seen crying and running for safety as clashes broke out in the area soon after the prayers. Some scared women took shelter in nearby houses as stone pelting and teargas shelling intensified.
"I am held up at Safa Kadal in severe stone-pelting. It is really horrible. It is teargas shelling all over, I can't reach anywhere," Altaf Wani posted on his Facebook wall. Many people said it was improper to hold any protests on festivals. "This spoils the charm of festivals," said Ghulam Ali, a street vendor whose business remained affected due to protests during which Pakistani flags were also waved. While people faced inconvenience on the day, the separatist leaders from various parties seemingly drew political mileage from claiming responsibility for the protests, call for which was formally given by firebrand leader Syed Ali Geelani.
People's League in a party handout said, "Senior leader and chief spokesperson Imtiyaz Ahmad Reshi along with Tahoor Sidiqi led a protest rally in Srinagar, demanding right to self-determination."
"After the Eid congregation prayers at Soura, Imtiyaz Reshi and Tahoor Sidiqi along with dozens of hundred workers led a peaceful march chanting slogans in favor of freedom and Islam," the handout added.
"The occupation (forces) cannot succeed in their nefarious designs as the people of Kashmir have pledged to secure the right to self-determination despite all odds," the separatists, as per the handout, told the protesters.
Even Hurriyat led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq took credit for protest program called by parallel Hurriyat. The Hurriyat (M) in its handout hinted that protests were in support of Mirwaiz than Geelani.
"After the Eid prayers at Eidgah and other parts of the Valley there were widespread protests in favor of freedom and against the detention of the Mirwaiz and other pro-freedom leaders," the Hurriyat handout said.
Addressing the Eidgah congregation over phone, Mirwaiz, who was placed under house arrest, said, "These restrictions are imposed to distance the leadership and the people as the government fears their interaction and wants to muzzle the collective voice of the people."
Geelani on the other hand thanked the people for the protests, hinting that it was only because of his call that people took to streets while protests were also held near his residence at Hyderpora here.
A senior police official said deployments offered maximum restraint while bringing back life to normal within hours of the violence. He confirmed that Pakistani flags were waved during the protests.
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