October 05, 2008	Sunday	Shawwal 05, 1429

SRINAGAR, Oct 4: Pro-independence leaders in occupied Kashmir have said they would go ahead with a rally on Monday after the Indian government banned public gatherings for a month.

The last two months have seen some of the biggest pro-independence protests since a revolt against Indian rule broke out in the region in 1989.

The demonstrations were sparked by a decision to grant land for shelters for Hindu pilgrims travelling to mostly-Muslim Kashmir. About 40 protesters have been killed by government forces and more than 1,000 injured.

The Jammu-Kashmir Coordination Committee, a new alliance of militants and representatives of businesses and lawyers, plans to address a huge rally on Monday in Srinagar.

The government announced in a statement on Saturday that it was banning public meetings of five or more people for one month.

But militants said they would defy the ban, and appealed to people to join the rally.

“Come what may, we will defy all restrictions to make Monday’s rally a grand success,” said Yasin Malik, chief of the militant Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front.

Another Kashmiri leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, was placed under house arrest ahead of the demonstration.—Reuters