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Authorities clamped strict restrictions in Srinagar and north Kashmir’s Sopore town to foil a separatist march on Friday.
The march to Sopore where militants have shot dead six persons in the last three weeks has been called by three major separatist organisations -- the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference headed by Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar Farooq, the hardline APHC led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani and the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik.
Early on Friday morning heavy contingents of police and the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force troops moved in the old city areas of Srinagar to enforce the restrictions. Heavy deployments of police and the CRPF have been made in Sopore to stop the march.
Authorities on Thursday placed Mirwaiz, Geelani and Malik under house arrest in Srinagar. The police detained Geelani when he tried to move out of his house in the uptown Hyderpora locality on Friday morning.
Shops, businesses and transport are shut because of the restrictions in areas falling under five police stations. Tight security arrangements have been put in place in other parts of the capital city.
The Sopore town witnessed a spate of killings in past ten days claiming six civilian lives. The trouble in the town began last month when a little known outfit, ‘Lashkare Islami’ threatened telecom operators to shut their operations in the town which was followed by armed attacks on their facilities.
The attacks which targeted cellular franchise and towers claimed two lives and injuries to three others. The cellular services which were affected in north Kashmir have since been restored.
The town saw targeted killings of former militants and an activist of the Geelani led APHC triggering panic among the residents. Authorities have now moved heavy police deployments to the town to beef up the security and for search operations.
The killings were also discussed in the recent Unified Headquarters meeting chaired by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.