The authorities on Friday imposed restrictions in parts of Srinagar and Shopian to foil separatists’ call for a march towards Shopian, in the wake of killings of three civilians in the Army firing last week .
Locals said all lanes leading to the Shopian grand mosque have been sealed by the security forces. A spokesman of separatists Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) said its chief Yasin Malik had camped inside the mosque to lead a march after the Friday prayers.
“The Jamia Masjid Shopian has been sealed from all sides by the police and the CRPF. All lanes have been sealed, and barricaded. Yasin sahib is inside the mosque and will lead a protest (after the Friday prayers),” said a JKLF spokesman.
In Srinagar, All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was arrested when he tried to step out from his Nigeen residence, where he was placed under house arrest in the morning.
All train services have been suspended from Banihal to Baramulla “for security reasons”.
The areas under six police stations in Srinagar have been placed under security restrictions “as a precautionary measure”. Concertina wires have been placed on the main roads to seal off different parts of the old city.
A fresh wave of protests erupted in Kashmir valley after three civilians died in Army firing on January 27. The Army said it fired on stone-throwing protesters “in self defense”. It said the protesters tried to set Army vehicles to fire and injured nine soldiers with stones. An inquiry is on in the case.
