Daily Times

SRINAGAR: Curfew was extended in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) on Saturday, as thousands of people clashed with Indian forces during the funeral of a 12-year-old boy who succumbed to his injuries after being hit by pellets the other day.

Police and paramilitary troops fired teargas, pellets and live rounds to disperse the funeral procession of the 12-year-old Junaid Ahmad, as his body was carried to Srinagar’s “Martyr’s Graveyard”, a police officer told AFP on the condition of anonymity, as he was not authorised to speak to the media. Residents said the boy was sprayed with pellets in the lawn outside his home, and he was hit in the head and chest, but police claim he was part of the anti-India protests that took place on Friday. “We are taking all possible measures so that the protests don’t spread to other areas,” the officer said, referring to the curfew.

As the news about the death of Junaid reached his native area of Saidpora, thousands of people gathered in his home, despite curfew. They marched towards the Martyrs’ Graveyard at Eidgah to offer his funeral prayers. The body was shrouded in a Pakistani flag. As soon as the slain schoolboy’s body was buried, the family members, relatives and neighbours mostly women took to streets and raised anti-India and pro-freedom slogans.

Junaid’s family said that forces barged into their house and opened fire. “He was not out to fetch toffee from the camp or milk from the police station,” said one of the female family members. The protesting family said the ‘power hungry people’ had left Kashmirs in the lurch. They demanded action against the personnel involved in the killing of their beloved. Earlier, the police used force to disperse the protesters, which triggered massive clashes between the protesters and the personnel, in which dozens of people were injured.

More than 50 people were injured during Friday’s protests in the restive Himalayan region, which has been roiled by deadly violence for nearly four months. At least 108 people, most of them young protesters, have been killed and more than 12,000 injured in clashes with Indian security forces. Thousands more have been arrested since the unrest began on July 8, when a popular rebel leader was killed by Indian soldiers. Since then, shops, schools and most banks have remained shut and authorities have suspended mobile phone Internet services.

Meanwhile, life remained suspended for the 92nd consecutive day in IHK due to the shutdown against the ongoing killing spree unleashed by the Indian forces.

The occupation authorities did not even allow people to take out a Muharram procession from Laal Bazaar area of Srinagar. Students also continued their protests in Srinagar and other areas against the authorities’ decision of conducting exams despite volatile situation in the valley.

On the other hand, Srinagar-based media – quoting official record – revealed that in a bid to quell the ongoing uprising, the puppet authorities had booked 134 persons under the draconian law in the north during the past three months. Reports said that the authorities had also identified around 130 government employees to book them under the Public Safety Act for taking part in anti-India protests.