Conflict

Clashes erupt in Parray pora after students protest against harassment of Kashmiris across India

IMAGE COURTESY: GREATER KASHMIR.

Srinagar: Massive clashes erupted in the upper town of Parray pora in Srinagar city after students hit the streets to protest the widespread abuse and harassment of Kashmiris in Jammu and other parts of India following the Pulwama attack that killed 49 CRPF personnel. Protests were staged in Sopore as well.

Students at Wadura campus of Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) protested inside the college premises and demanded an immediate release of Kashmiri student detained in Himachal Pradesh on Sunday.

“Kashmiris are not safe outside and this is not for the first time that our brothers and sisters are being targeted, harassed and detained,” said a student, according to news agency GNS.

Scores of students studying in different tuition centers in Paraypora area of Srinagar also staged a protest against the attacks.

ALSO READ: Pulwama attack aftermath: Two Dehradun colleges says won’t admit Kashmiris anymore

The students also expressed their resentment over the growing attacks on Kashmiris and demanded an immediate end to it.

They also demanded the withdrawal of sedition and other cases of the students in different parts of India.

Following the protests, the police arrived at the scene and the students resorted to stone pelting, leading to massive clashes.

According to eyewitnesses, no teargas shells were used but the police was trying to control the situation. More police personnel were rushed to the spot to control the situation.

Earlier, Aligarh Muslim University suspended an undergraduate Kashmiri student for his alleged objectionable tweet in connection with the Pulwama attack.

ALSO READ: About 280 students from Dehradun, Haryana reach Mohali, head for homes in JK: Report

A Kashmiri student pursuing BTech in Chitkara University in Himachal Pradesh was arrested for allegedly “glorifying” the suicide bomber Aadil Ahmed Dar, who was behind the Pulwama attack, reported the Indian Express.

In Jammu, curfew was imposed on Friday after miscreants torched vehicles and damaged several others carrying number plates of the Kashmir Valley in protest against Thursday’s killing of 49 CRPF troopers in a suicide attack in Pulwama by a Jaish-e-Mohammad militant.

A number of quarters belonging to Kashmiris in the Janipur area of Jammu were attacked by frenzied mobs, despite imposition of curfew in the city on Saturday.

“The mobs entered inside the premises and attacked quarters of Kashmiris while police remained a mute spectator,” they said, according to GNS.

ALSO READ: #IndiaWantsRevenge: Kashmiris outside fear for their lives, face xenophobia, abuse, rustication after Pulwama attack

Secretariat Employees Union President Ghulam Rasool Mir had condemned the attack and urged the administration to ensure the safety of the people from Kashmir and those from the particular community.

The fresh attack came despite the fact that the administration had not relaxed curfew on Saturday too.

After the mob violence, Army was immediately called in to restore order in the city.

Curfew was imposed on Friday when a mob torched and damaged at least 30 vehicles belonging to local Muslims and Kashmiris. Curfew was initially imposed in some vulnerable areas, but was later extended to the entire city as tension mounted in the wake of violence against a particular section of the society.

The authorities met with important citizens belonging to different communities on Friday to seek their help in bringing the city back to normal.

ALSO READ: West Bengal: Kashmiri doctor asked to ‘go back to Pakistan or face dire consequences’, state govt intervenes

The Joint Resistance Leadership had condemned the arson attacks in Jammu, saying it is the responsibility of the state administration to ensure safety of Kashmiris living there.

“Right from 1947 (when subcontinent was divided), communal forces active in Jammu leave no stone unturned to attack and intimidate Muslims and Kashmiri people,” they said.

Trouble erupted when a group of people belonging to various right wing organisations including Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena, and VHP took out a procession carrying tricolours through Gujjar Nagar, which is predominantly inhabited by Muslims.

Earlier, Omar Abdullah, Vice President of the National Conference had appealed Rajnath Singh take ‘special care of areas where Kashmiris as residing or studying.’

In a tweet, he had said that ‘they (Kashmiris) are soft targets in a surcharged atmosphere.’

Click to comment
To Top