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Kashmiris shop for Eid before three-day shutdown

September 05, 2010 21:42 IST

Kashmiris thronged the markets on Sunday to shop for the festival of Eid, which marks the end of the fasting month of Ramazan at the end of this week.

Today was the last day of normalcy in the valley, as separatist leaders have called for a three-day shutdown from Monday. Hard-line separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who draws up the protest calendars, has called for a 'Quit Kashmir Campaign'.

Since Sunday morning, thousands of people including women and children thronged market places in Srinagar and other towns to shop for Eid, which will fall around September 10.

The markets, however, had run out of many items as the prolonged series of shutdowns had affected the supply of goods to the valley.

But the fervour of the shoppers remained subdued in view of the unrest prevailing in the valley since June 11, which has claimed 65 lives.

Public and private transport plied normally during the day, choking many intersections in the city.

Geelani has called for an 'austere' Eid and asked the people to keep the festivities to the bare minimum to express sympathy and solidarity with the families 'who lost their dear ones in the unrest'.

The Eid shopping continued even after sundown, when devout Muslims break their fast.

On Sunday evening, Geelani announced a half-day break in the shutdown on Monday from 2 pm in view of the festival of 'Shabi-Qadr', when Muslims pray during the night.

Mukhtar Ahmad In Srinagar