Kashmir tense after Guru's hanging, curfew imposed

A curfew was imposed on Monday morning across Kashmir valley in the wake of the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru in Tihar Jail.

Police and paramilitary troops have been deployed across Kashmir to maintain law and order.

The authorities have ordered all cable operators in Kashmir to suspend their operation immediately.

Reportage: Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

Click on NEXT for more...

The ruling National Conference and other major political parties in the state had been pleading for presidential clemency for Guru citing the sensitive situation in the valley.

The residents were taken by surprise at the sudden imposition of the curfew. Though the authorities had not revealed the reason for the sudden and severe security bandobast, the valley was agog with rumours that Guru had been hanged in Delhi.

Click on NEXT for more...

Early on Saturday, police vehicles fitted with loud speakers started making rounds of the various parts of Srinagar other major towns, announcing the imposition of curfew and asking residents to stay indoors.

Troops in full riot gear have started patrolling Srinagar, barricading roads to restrict the pedestrian and vehicular movement.

"Curfew has been imposed in the valley and security forces have been deployed to maintain law and order," said a police officer.

Click on NEXT for more...

He also said that army has also been alerted in the valley.

Sources said Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will soon reach Srinagar to oversee the law and order situation.

The separatists have already called for a shutdown on Monday to coincide with the death anniversary of Maqbool Bhat, the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front founder, in Tihar jail in Delhi on February 11, 1984.

Click on NEXT for more...

Moderate Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has announced a four-day mourning on the death of Mohammad Afzal Guru, who was hanged this morning following his conviction in the Parliament attack case.

"We call on people to observe four-day mourning on the hanging of Guru. A complete shutdown will be observed over the mourning period," Shahidul Islam, spokesman of the amalgam,

Hurriyat also demands immediate return of the mortal remains of Guru so that he can be given a burial according to his family's wishes and as per Islamic rituals, the spokesman said.

...

Meanwhile, the spokesman of the Syed Ali Shah Geelani-led hardline Hurriyat Conference Ayaz Akbad was taken into preventive custody by police in the wee hours on Saturday.

"Akbar was arrested by police at 5.00 am and taken to an unknown location," his son said.

All the senior separatist leaders including Geelani, Mirwaiz and JKLF leader Mohammad Yasin Malik are presently out of the Valley and could not be reached for a comment.

...

Jamaat-e-Islami condemned Afzal's hanging saying "the hanging of Guru in Tihar Jail mysteriously is an expression of extreme despotism and tyranny by the Government of India".

"This action has deeply hurt the sentiments of more than one crore Kashmiri people. In order to achieve its nefarious political designs, the party holding the reigns of power in

Delhi has always been committing such tactical tyrannical actions since 1947 whenever this party seemed to lose its power," a spokesman of the Jamaat, Zahid Ali said.

He alleged that the the hanging of Guru also carries a sinister design to create an atmosphere of fear among the Kashmiri people so as to deter them from demanding their "usurped right of self determination"

...

Mobile internet services in the Kashmir Valley were snapped following the hanging amid apprehensions of a backlash.

All the mobile internet connections stopped functioning on Saturday morning as the news about hanging of Guru broke out.

Although, no reason has been given for snapping the services, it is believed that the step was taken as a preemptive measure to stop misuse of internet.

In the past, authorities have suspended internet and mobile services during the 2010 summer unrest in the Valley as some people used the internet to mobilise protests.

These services are suspended on every Republic day and Independence Day as a precautionary measure as well.

Click on NEXT to go further...

...