Authorities on Thursday imposed strict restrictions in six police station areas of Jammu and Kashmir's summer capital and placed the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar Farooq under house arrest to scuttle a rally called by the separatist group.
The rally has been organised at the downtown Eidgah grounds to commemorate the death anniversary of two slain separatist leaders, Mirwaiz Mohammad Farooq and Abdul Gani Lone.
While Mirwaiz Mohammad Farooq, father of the moderate APHC chairman, Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar Farooq was killed inside his house this day in 1990 by unidentified gunmen, Abdul Gani Lone, father of Sajad Lone, state animal husbandry minister was shot at and killed during a rally in Eidgah on May 21, 2002.
Thursday’s rally called by moderate APHC was to start from Bohri Kadal area in the old city in the afternoon and culminate at Eidgah grounds.
Early Thursday morning, hundreds of police and paramilitary and Central Reserve Police Force troops moved into the areas falling under six police stations in the old city to enforce strict restrictions. Restrictions on the movement of people were imposed in Khanyar, Safakadal, Maharaj Gunj, Nowhatta, Rainawari and Maisuma police station areas as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order, a police official said.
“There is heavy deployment of security forces in the old city. No movement is being allowed. The security forces have put up barricades and coils of razor fitted wire to curtail pedestrian and vehicular movement,” said Javed Ahmad, a local resident in Bohri Kadal.
Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar Farooq, who was to lead the rally from the old city, was placed under house arrest by the administration.
Security forces have also been deployed in strength around Eidgah, the venue of Thursday’s rally.
This is the first time that the government has placed restrictions on the rally.
The administration had last month allowed a rally to welcome hard-line separatist leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani during which Pakistan flags were waved and pro-Pakistan slogans raised following which Geelani was placed under house arrest.
Police also arrested a separatist leader, Masarat Alam Bhat who was subsequently detained under the harsh PSA (Public Safety Act). He has been lodged in high security Kotbalwal jail in Jammu.
Photograph: Umar Ganie/Rediff.com
