Mirwaiz supporters burst crackers on his arrival in Lahore

Srinagar, Jan 18 (UNI) Supporters of moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq burst crackers across the Kashmir valley soon after his arrival at the Lahore airport this evening.

A three-member moderate Hurriyat delegation, comprising besides the Mirwaiz, Prof Abdul Ghani Bhat and Bilal Ghani Lone, left New Delhi for Pakistan on a five-day visit today.

Moderate Hurriyat spokesman Advocate Shahid-ul-Islam said jubilant supporters of the amalgam burst crackers in many parts of Srinagar, Baramulla, Kupwara, Sopore, Anantnag and Pulwama to celebrate the arrival of the Mirwaiz and other leaders in Lahore.

He said the Hurriyat leaders were accorded a warm reception on their arrival at the Lahore airport on way to Islamabad for talks with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and others on the resolution of the Kashmir issue.

Advocate Shahid-ul-Islam claimed that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have pinned ''high hopes'' on the visit of Hurriyat leaders to Pakistan.

''By bursting crackers, the people have expressed their joy and celebratory mood. They are hopeful of positive outcome of the visit of Hurriyat leaders to Pakistan,'' he added.

Meanwhile, the bursting of crackers created panic among the residents of several localities in the city.

The people mistook the sound of crackers for gun shots and were seen asking each other whether the situation was normal. Even security personnel were seen in alert positions.

UNI