SRINAGAR: Indian troops enforced the fifth day of a military lockdown across held Kashmir but eased some restrictions for Friday prayers, as China and Pakistan vowed to stand together after New Delhi’s move to end the region’s autonomy.

Beijing said it was “seriously concerned” after the decision by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to tighten its grip on held Kashmir, parts of which are also claimed by China and Pakistan, threatened to destabilise one of the world’s most volatile security flashpoints.

New Delhi has flooded the region with soldiers and enforced a curfew in a bid to contain any violence. On Friday the population were allowed to attend prayers “within their neighbourhood” but were unable to “venture out of their local area”, the region’s police chief Dilbag Singh said.

The giant Jama Masjid mosque in Srinagar — a longtime focus for separatist protests — remained closed as the government sought to keep a lid on unrest after it cancelled the constitutionally guaranteed privileges of the former Himalayan kingdom, residents said.

“It’s tense,” one resident said after going near the mosque. “There are troops everywhere.” Protests against Indian rule have frequently broken out in Srinagar’s old quarter after weekly prayers at the mosque, which can hold more than 30,000 worshippers.

The reinforcements and the 500,000 troops already in held Kashmir fighting a three-decade-old insurgency were put on “high alert” for trouble around Friday prayers, the Press Trust of India news agency reported from Srinagar, quoting a security official.

“There is apprehension of mass protests and accordingly necessary steps were taken,” the official said.

The curfew, which has seen internet and phone services cut is set to continue over the weekend.India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is to visit Beijing from Sunday for talks with Wang.Despite the huge security presence, sporadic protests have been reported in recent days in Srinagar and the Ladakh region which the government has split away from Jammu and Kashmir under the new measures.

Police have chased groups of pro-separatist demonstrators in Srinagar, many of whom gather at night, residents said. One youth died this week after jumping in a river to escape security forces, according to police.

Friday prayers were the start of a crucial test of New Delhi’s ability to enforce the decision by Modi’s Hindu nationalist government. Eidul Azha is on Monday.

Modi said in a nationwide address on Thursday that people will “not face difficulties” celebrating Eid.

Media reports said, however, that authorities would only decide on curfew restrictions on Sunday.

Published in Dawn, August 10th, 2019