Normal life was disrupted in the Kashmir Valley on Monday following the bandh call issued by traders’ bodies and separatists against an attempt to burn alive two Kashmiri truckers in Jammu’s Udhampur area a few days ago.
There were incidents of stone-throwing in parts of south Kashmir from where the truckers hail. Windowpanes of several vehicles were smashed on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.
Activists of the separatist Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front tried to take out a protest march at Lal Chowk but were stopped by the police.
The shutdown call by the Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation and Kashmir Economic Alliance, supported by all separatist groups, , including factions of the Hurriyat, brought life to a standstill. Public transport remained off the road. Most shops, offices, banks and petrol pumps remained closed.
Civil society groups condemned the attack on the Kashmir-bound truck immediately after the discovery of carcasses of three cows, put Udhampur on the boil on Saturday.
“The Udhampur attack has created a sense of fear among Kashmiris. We received several calls from Kashmiris working in Jammu who feel unsafe and insecure,” said president of the Kashmir unit of the doctors association, Dr. Nisar-ul-Hassan.
“Truckers from the Valley are scared to ply on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. This attack seems to be a conspiracy hatched by some elements to break the age-old bond between two regions of the State,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, a joint meeting of the Jammu Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry was convened here where the presidents of the two chambers — Rakesh Gupta and Mushtaq Ahmad Wani — demanded decisive action to prevent such motivated attacks.
Both the chambers vowed “to fight all elements who want to dilute the identity of the permanent residents of Jammu & Kashmir by debating on sections of the Constitution.”
It was also decided that the two chambers would meet periodically to discuss matters of mutual interest.
Blast ahead
of CM’s visit
An explosive went off outside a local civil secretariat in south Kashmir’s Shopian district in the morning, around 70 km south of Srinagar. Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed was scheduled to visit the area.
The low-intensity blast was reported around 11 a.m. A police team was rushed to the spot. .
“No wires, timer, splinters of iron, box or grenade lever were found,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police, Shopian, Zahoor Ahmad.
The DSP said the area was dug up to a depth of four feet with a diameter of six feet. “No crater was observed there. Seems to be a firecracker,” he added.
