Pampore, Feb 22, CNS: Amid fierce gunfight between militants and Government Forces, South Kashmir’s saffron town Pampore resonated with pro-freedom slogans on Monday. Defying restrictions, angry youths staged protests raising pro-Islamic and pro-freedom slogans in different localities of the town while groups of youth pelted stones on men in uniform.
Eyewitnesses told CNS, groups of youth in Frestbal, Kadlabal, Drangbal and other localities hit to roads and resorted to stone-pelting. The protesters tried to march towards encounter site despite the fact, authorities have recently issued an advisory prohibiting the movement of people in and around the encounter site.
The protesting youth burnt tyres on road and created bottlenecks to make the police movement difficult. “The youth clashed with government forces while in local Masjids, public address systems were used to play Kashmiri patriotic numbers,” said a local. ‘Songs praising militants and in favour of Kashmir Freedom Movement surcharged the atmosphere persuading people to come out from their houses. The situation is tense and surcharged. After every gunshot, pro-freedom slogans resonate in air,” said another local.
CNS reporter who was present on the encounter spot said that it was 90’s like situation in Pampore. “Loud speakers in local Masjids across the town played songs eulogising militants and Freedom Movement.”
Reports said that the intense stone-pelting incidents prompted police to burst tear-smoke shells on protesters. The clashes between protesters and government forces left over a dozen people injured, some of them were shifted to local hospital for treatment. Locals alleged the Government Forces used pellet guns.
A police official told CNS that groups of youth attacked police with stones while tried to march towards encounter site. “Despite repeated warnings they did not relent. Police charged them with mild lathi charge,” he said and added that few cops were injured during the clashes.
Pertinently, the gunfight started on Saturday evening when militants attacked a CRPF bus at Sempora (Pampore) on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. After attacking the bus, the militants had entered the JKEDI complex and taken cover in the multi-storeyed building.The slain people include Abdul Gani Mir of Gundipora Pulwama, JKEDI gardener, captain Pawan Kumar of 10 para regiment belonging to Jind (Haryana), captain Tushar Mahajan of nine para regiment belonging to Udhampur town of Jammu region, Lance naik Om Prakash of nine para regiment, head constable Bhola Prasad and driver constable R. K. Rana, both of the CRPF. (CNS)
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