Hurriyat leader Wani held

SRINAGAR: Shabir Ahmad Wani, a middle rung leader of Jammu and Kashmir’s hardline Hurriyat group, has been arrested here for allegedly instigating violence in the Valley, police said on Friday.

Wani was arrested late Thursday based on intercepts of a phone conversation between him and another person identified as Ghulam Ahmad Dar, a police official said.

“The middle rung Hurriyat leader was arrested after his phone conversation with Ghulam Ahmad Dar during which Wani had told his friend that 10-15 people should be martyred during protests with security forces,” he said. Wani and Dar had been discussing a violent protest in central Badgam district, he added.

The arrest followed disclosures by home ministry sources in New Delhi that “some violence in Kashmir was instigated”.

Wani’s family has, however, been maintaining that he is innocent. Meanwhile, a series of protests were held after Friday prayers, and police had to use force to disperse protesters. A number of people were injured and scores were rounded up after the show-off, reports said.

In Srinagar, where the grand mosque remained locked for the second consecutive Friday, authorities permitted a small gathering of not more than 2500 to offer prayers at the Dargah Hazratbal shrine. After the prayers, people came out in protest against the killings. Police used force to disperse the gathering.

A major protest was also reported from Baramulla. Most of the people offered their Friday prayers at Eidgah Qadeem making it one of the huge gatherings in recent days. After the prayers, they walked to the cement bridge — connecting the old with new Baramulla — and held a sit in. Police burst tear smoke shells and fired several rounds in air to disperse the crowd.

Many parts of the Valley have been under an indefinite curfew, enforced with the Army’s assistance, following violent protests that led to three deaths in firing by security forces on Tuesday.