Irate Jammu protesters set fire to vehicles over Amarnath shrine row

Jammu, August 21 : Irate demonstrators burnt vehicles in Jammu on Thursday protesting over controversial shrine land row.

A group of angry protesters went on a rampage damaging the vehicle of a senior leader belonging to central ruling Congress party and former Deputy Chief Minister of State Mangat Ram Sharma, who was visiting the area.

The protestors also set on fire four private vehicles parked in a by-lane.

Sharma, whose car was badly damaged, urged the people to maintain peace and harmony and try and strengthen relations between Kashmir and Jammu regions.

"I appeal to the people that they should maintain peace and harmony, and strengthen the relations between Jammu and Kashmir regions, as one cannot survive without the other," said Sharma, leader, Congress Party.

Jammu has been rocked by violent protests and demonstrations and shutdown for nearly two months over the issue of transfer of a forestland to the trust that runs Amarnath shrine, a cave shrine in the Himalayas visited by Hindu pilgrims.

Meanwhile, several streets in New Delhi turned into a sea of saffron as scores of activists of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came out on streets wearing saffron coloured caps and headbands demanding restoration of land to the revered Hindu shrine in Kashmir.

The activists marched down the streets chanting slogans, demanding revocation of the cancellation order.

The activists threatened to continue with protests if their demand was not met forthwith.

"Till the time the Congress government returns the land promised to the Amarnath Shrine Board, we will continue with our protests in the country. The way the government has snatched back the land from Amarnath, in the same way we will also snatch the Congress territories from them because people of the country are very angry with the regime," said Shahnawaz Hussain, leader, BJP.

The activists struggled with the police and courted arrest.

The row over the land allocated for setting up temporary facilities for Hindu pilgrims visiting Amarnath shrine in Kashmir and withdrawn later has snowballed into large-scale protests for more than seven weeks.

ANI