Kashmir: Five protesters injured in police action

At least five people were injured when security forces allegedly fired rubber bullets and lobbed teargas shells to disperse a stone-pelting mob at Sopore in north Kashmir on Wednesday, official sources said.

Numbering around 50, residents of Hathishah Mohalla, especially the youth, took out a procession to express solidarity with the residents of tension-ridden Chinkipora this afternoon, but the police allegedly intervened and asked them to disperse, sources said.

Chinkipora, the scene of a fierce gunbattle between militants and security forces on Tuesday, is tense as security forces were still engaged in searching for the bodies of militants who may have been killed in the encounter.

Three armymen including a captain were also killed in the gunbattle.

Body of a militant was recovered from the rubbles while a militant, believed to have been killed on Tuesday, emerged alive from the debris and opened fire at security personnel injuring one of them, but was killed in retaliatory fire.

The sources said when the protestors were stopped, they turned violent and pelted stones on the security forces.

The security forces allegedly resorted to cane charge and lobbed teargas shells to disperse them resulting in injuries to four persons including a cop.

However, when the stone-pelting youth did not relent, security forces fired rubber bullets, which hit allegedly a protestor in the leg.