Tral march, 14 hurt as protesters throw stones, clash with cops in Srinagar

At least 14 people, including cops, were injured in Jammu & Kashmir on Friday as protesters led by separatists clashed with cops in Srinagar.

The protesters, led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, were on their way to Tral to protest the killing of a youth in an Army operation.

While the locals claimed that the deceased was a civilian, the security forces have maintained that he was a militant.

Police first resorted to lathicharge and then used tear gas shells to stop the protesters, who pelted stones at the cops.

Mirwaiz Farooq demanded probe into the Tral encounter and immediate withdrawal of AFSPA from the state.

“It’s unfortunate that the government has not given a clear statement on this, government has to put an end to state terrorism,” Mirwaiz Farooq said, adding, “On issue of AFSPA, we’ve seen innocents have been killed, fake Tral encounter has yet not been addressed and there have been no arrests.”

Earlier in the day, separatist leader Masarat Alam was arrested by the police after Pakistani flags were waved at a rally organized by him.

The 45-year-old separatist leader, who was placed under house arrest late on Thursday night, was arrested from his home in Habba kadal area of early on Friday morning and taken to police station.

Another separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani is also under house arrest, after he called for a protest march to Tral.