by Bilal Bahadur
Srinagar: Normal life remained affected for the second consecutive day on Tuesday as the authorities imposed restrictions in certain parts of the Srinagar to foil a sit-in protest by the Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) at Lal Chowk over the killing of seven civilians in a blast in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Sunday.
All roads leading to Lal Chowk’s historic Ghanta Ghar (clock tower) were sealed with concertina wires while a large number of police and paramilitary personnel were deployed to foil any attempt by the joint resistance leadership to reach there, reports said.
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik who had gone into hiding to evade arrest was detained in Lal Chowk after he led a march of his supporters towards the Ganta Ghar.
Hurriyat (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was detained and lodged at police station Nigeen after he defied his house arrest and tried to march towards Lal Chowk.
Amid curfew-like restrictions, scores of the members of Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF) members led by Yasin Khan took out a protest march through Residency road and staged a sit-in at Regal Chowk where police had erected a barricade.
KCCI Secretary General, Farooq Amin, in a statement issued here said the KCCI members were prevented from proceeding towards Lal Chowk. “Despite strict restrictions, a large number of members of the Chamber participated in the protest march. The protest was led by Senior Vice President, Nasir Hamid Khan,” he said.
Police foiled the march of National Conference and detained scores of its leaders after they tried to march towards Raj Bhavan against the recent killing spree in Kashmir.
Shops, private offices, and other business establishments remained shut in many parts of the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, while public transport was off the roads.
The authorities also imposed restrictions in parts of the old city as a “precautionary measure” to maintain law and order.
The Joint resistance leadership had not called for a strike on Tuesday, but the authorities shut down all educational institutions and postponed examinations.