MUZAFFARABAD, Dec 31: Around three dozen businessmen engaged in intra-Kashmir trade went on a hunger strike on Saturday against what they alleged bullying and intimidation by the customs officials.

They expressed their resolve that the hunger strike would continue until their concerns were addressed.

The hunger strike came a day after the traders pulled up nearly 120 trucks loaded with different tradable items, mainly red chillies and cardamom, along the Jhelum Valley road and staged a demonstration against the uncalled-for attitude of the customs officials.

The trucks were still standing there as the traders declared they would not dispatch the goods to the downstream markets unless the authorities concerned made a decision in black and white to bring their plight to an end.

However, the traders have been facing many problems such as absence of banking services, limited communications, restrictions on their movement and a limited range of tradable goods.

Lately, the traders on AJK side found themselves in quandary as they were being forced by the Pakistan customs officials to pay the custom duties.

However, according to Advocate Pervez Ahmed, spokesman for the LoC Traders' Action Committee, only three days after the AJK PM's assurance three more vehicles were impounded by the customs officials near Gujrat, forcing them to suspend the trade.

Talking to Dawn at the hunger strike camp, Mr Pervez said after a protest by the traders, the Foreign Office of Pakistan had to intervene in the matter and hold out an assurance that not only the impounded vehicles would be released but recurrence of such incidents would also be averted.

He said the traders had also lodged a complaint with the FIA against some customs officials “who had been constantly extorting money from traders for clearance of their trucks.”

“We have a record of it which we have provided to the FIA for further investigations,” he said.

Advocate Pervez averred that the custom officials were now pressurising them to withdraw their complaint.