Crackdown continues in Srinagar; 17 more arrested

Clash on removing of Pak flag; 15 injured in Chhattabal firing

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Aug 22: Even as the local cable networks today restored service of Pakistan Television broadcasts in violation of District Magistrate’s orders after two years and the state government chose to ignore it completely, Police attracted trouble over removing a Pakistani national flag. Over a dozen demonstrators sustained injuries in a fierce clash with Police at Chhattabal in the capital city which witnessed arrest of 17 more alleged stone pelters on a day of curfew and shutdown in Valley.

Official sources told Early Times that Police staged a flag march through the dense Chhatabal locality in the forenoon today. It spotted a Pakistani national flag hoisted on top of an overhead water storage tank in Chhan Mohalla, right in front of Army’s Tatoo Ground formation. While the flag was being pulled down, scores of residents gathered and engaged the Police party in a fierce clash in violation of curfew restrictions. Curfew remained in force in over half of the capital city alongside umpteenth shutdown all over the Valley in response to Hurriyat (G) Chairman Syed Ali Geelani’s call.

Sources said that around a hundred people shouted pro-Pakistan, pro-Azadi and anti-India slogans and subjected the Police party to intense stone pelting from different directions. Police, in retaliation, fired teargas shells and used the lately introduced Pump Actions Guns. Unconfirmed reports said that 15 civilian demonstrators sustained pallet injuries and they were rushed to nearby SMHS Hospital. Officials insisted that only six stone pelters sustained injuries.

“Police was conducting a flag march in North city when it sighted one objectionable flag. The flag was removed. Some miscreants pelted stones heavily on the police. The police conducted cane charge, used tear smoke and pump action ammunition to chase away the miscreants. Six people have got pallet injuries and were shifted to Hospital. The condition of all is reported to be out of danger. Five have got pallet injury on their legs”, an official press release said.

Authorities, however, did not object to restoration of PTV services by the local cable operators from today after a gap of over two years. In 2008, District Magistrates in the Valley had banned servicing of Pakistani government and private television channels with the argument that there was no such permission from union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting which charges licence fee of Rs 13 Lakh from the properly registered foreign channel operators. Sources said that PTV services had been restored by the cable operators in downtown Srinagar and some other towns last month. These were restored in Civil Lines and uptown from today.

After nearly four weeks, Government has also withdrawn ban from operation of “Sen Television Network” which had been stopped last month for “overexposure” to the separatist street protests and speeches of hardliners.

Amid declared curfew in over half of the capital city, undeclared curfew in at least three towns and total shutdown on Geelani’s call in rest of the Valley, groups of youth clashed with Police and CRPF at several places. Over a dozen people reportedly got injured in such clashes at Alyalpora in Shopian and Pruchoo in Pulwama.

On the second consecutive day, Police conducted crackdown on alleged stone pelters in Rainawari, Maharaj Bazar, Mehjoor Nagar and Rawalpora. Of the 30 youth picked up from Nundrishi Colony, Bemina, on Saturday, police have released most of the detainees but held 9 youths under allegation of extortion of truck drivers on National Highway Bypass besides stone pelting.

SSP Srinagar, Syed Ashiq Hussain Bukhari, told Early Times that in a series of cordon-and-search operations and identification parades, Police today arrested 10 persons from downtown and 7 more from the uptown localities. He claimed that Police was in possession of foolproof evidence, including photographs and video footage, to prove that the detainees were involved in stone pelting and disruption of law and order. He said that the operation would continue.

In his immediate reaction, Mr Geelani threatened to step up the agitation in case such operations were not stopped at once. Most of other separatist leaders have also condemned detention of youth in what they called “1990-type cordon-and-search operations” and demanded immediate release of all the detainees. A number of mainstream politicians have also expressed identical views over the Police operations.

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