Valley reels under 14th day of curfew and separatist shutdown

Srinagar, July 22: Curfew and separatists-called protest shutdown marred life across the Valley for the 14th day running on Friday.

Authorities imposed curfew in all the 10 districts of the Valley on Friday making announcements on loudspeaker mounted on police vehicles and asked people to remain indoors.

"People are asked to remain indoors," said one such loudspeaker mounted on a police vehicle in north Kashmir's Ganderbal district.

Sources in the state administration said curfew will be strictly enforced to prevent post Friday prayer violence in the Valley.

Separatists have already extended their protest shutdown call up to Monday.

State Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday visited bereaved families in south Kashmir Anantnag district whose members have been killed in the ongoing violence that has claimed 45 lives.

The chief minister also met families members of those who have been injured during protests those began on July 9, a day after Hizbul commander, Burhan Wani was killed in a gunfight with the security forces.

Authorities had announced opening of schools in four districts of Baramulla, Badgam, Bandipora and Ganderbal on Thursday.

Due to prevailing tension and continuing curfew in these districts, the decision to re-open schools failed to encourage parents to send children to schools.

Encouragingly, no major incident of violence took place anywhere in the Valley.

Mufti also chaired an all party meeting held in Srinagar on Thusrday. The regional National Conference (NC) boycotted the meeting while the Congress, CPI M and Democratic Party Nationalist (DPN) attended it.

The meeting condemned violence while condoling the killing of people in violence.

Separatists had asked people to resume normal activities of life from 2 p.m. onwards for the remaining portion of the day on Thursday.

The authorities enforced curfew more strictly during this period to shoot down the intended message that the separatists were calling all the shots in Kashmir.

IANS