Security cover of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq reduced

Reports say lynching of Jammu and Kashmir Police DySP Mohammad Ayub Pandith outside a mosque in Srinagar as the reason for the downgrading the security of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq

Jammu and Kashmir police on Wednesday reduced the security of many high profile people, including moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, due to heightened security to ongoing Amarnath Yatra, reports said.

But a private TV channel said lynching of Jammu and Kashmir Police DySP Mohammad Ayub Pandith outside a mosque in Srinagar as the reason for the downgrading the security of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.

Pandith was lynched by a violent mob on 23 June, during night-long congregational prayers outside Srinagar's Jamia Masjid, when a group of youths found a "few people moving suspiciously" outside the premises of the mosque in Nowhatta.

After the incident, Mehbooba Mufti-led government was under pressure to give free hand to Jammu and Kashmir police to withdraw security of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.

However, IG Kashmir Police told ANI that the security of high profile people have been reduced due to heavy security to ongoing Amarnath Yatra.

Amarnath Yatra security:

The ongoing Amarnath Yatra has the highest-ever security setup to ensure an incident-free. The government has mobilized a heavy security blanket of over 35,000 to 40,000 troops, including the police, the Army, the BSF and the CRPF.

In addition to the existing strength of the CRPF in the state, the Centre has provided over 250 companies (25,000 personnel) of paramilitary forces to the state government.

The BSF has deployed over 2,000 troops for the yatra while the Army has provided five battalions (about 5,000 personnel). An additional 54 companies (5,400 personnel) of the police have also been mobilized.

SN Shrivastava, special director general, CRPF, said: "This Amarnath yatra will have the highest-ever security setup to ensure an incident-free yatra."

OneIndia News