Shutdown in Kashmir to mark Afzal Guru’s eighth death anniversary

Srinagar, February 9

Normal life was affected in Kashmir on Tuesday due to a shutdown to mark the eight death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru who was hanged in New Delhi’s Tihar Jail on this day in 2013, officials said.

Most of the shops, fuel stations and other business establishments were shut in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, while public transport was largely off the roads, the officials said.

However, they said, private cars, auto-rickshaws and cabs were plying in the city.

The officials said similar reports of shutdown were also received from other district headquarters of the valley.

Security forces have been deployed in strength at vulnerable places in the city and elsewhere in the valley to avoid any untoward incident, they added.

Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) had last week called for a complete strike on February 9 and 11 to mark the death anniversaries of Guru and its founder Mohammad Maqbool Bhat, who was hanged in the Tihar Jail on February 11, 1984.

Also, posters, purportedly issued by Hurriyat Conference, were pasted in some areas of the city, calling for a shutdown on Tuesday and Thursday.

However, the officials said, the authenticity of the posters could not be verified.

Unlike the previous years, the authorities did not impose restrictions on the movement and assembly of people or order the suspension of mobile Internet services as a precautionary measure on the day. PTI