SRINAGAR: Police say around 100 people have been injured as Indian government forces fired tear gas and shotgun pellets to quell thousands of protesters who pelted rocks and burned a government office in India-held Kashmir.
A police officer said clashes erupted Sunday when police tried to stop the marchers heading to a village in Shopian district in response to a call from groups challenging India’s sovereignty over Kashmir.
Also Sunday, key leaders refused to meet a group of Indian lawmakers headed by Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh who came from New Delhi as part of government efforts to restore normalcy in IHK. A prolonged curfew, communication blackouts and a tightening crackdown in IHK have failed to stop some of the largest protests against Indian rule in recent years, triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in July.