For the first time since the unrest began, Jammu and Kashmir government lifted the 52-day- long curfew from most of the places on Monday in a bid to test the political waters ahead of the visit of the all-party delegation to the restive Valley, even as chief minister Mehbooba Mufti cautioned that the violence cannot force the solution to Kashmir issue.
Baring areas falling under the jurisdiction of Nowhatta and MR Gunj police stations of old city and Pulwama town, curfew was lifted from all the areas of the Valley. However the separatists sponsored shutdown continued for the 52nd day on Monday in Kashmir.
Lifting of curfew was marred by stone pelting incidents at several places across Kashmir. People came on roads at number of places and clashed with the security forces. The ding dong battle between security forces and protestors continued for hours.
Forces fired smoke shells, pellet rounds and used cane charge to quell the stone pelting mobs. Several people and security forces men have been injured in the clashes across Kashmir.
Police said minor incidents of stone pelting were reported from Srinagar, Anantnag, Kulgam, Sopore, Kupwara and Bandipora. "Some miscreants in their effort to disturb the situation pelted stones on police and security force deployments in these areas," a police spokesman said.
Police said except for these incidents, overall situation remained peaceful and under control throughout the Kashmir valley. "Greater movement of traffic and people was observed across the valley including the city Srinagar," the spokesman added.
The lifting of curfew comes at a time when centre is starting a major political initiative by sending all-party delegation to the Valley later this week. Centre is also reported to be working on Track II front to reach out to the people in the valley. Sources said the initiative may take shape during the visit of all-party delegation.
"Violence will not help resolve issues. Peace and dialogue is the only way forward towards addressing the Kashmir imbroglio. Violence has changed nothing on political spectrum of Jammu and Kashmir over the years and has only brought mayhem, miseries, economic disaster, academic breakdown and social disorder to the State," Mehbooba said.
Elaborating, she said the threads need to be picked up from where these were left by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2005, when a serious effort was made both on external and internal fronts to resolve the Kashmir issue through a credible and meaningful dialogue and confidence building process.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the mandate to take bold decisions on the lines of Vajpayee for the resolution of the problems in and around Jammu and Kashmir. We have to ensure that a credible mechanism for dialogue, reconciliation and resolution is put in place and it should not be like the half-hearted efforts made in similar situations after 2008 and 2010 unrest," she said.
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