SRINAGAR, Aug 29: Indian police detained on Friday a prominent Kashmiri leader who led some of the biggest protests in two decades against India’s rule in the occupied Himalayan region, police said.
The arrest came as security forces intensified a crackdown against Muslim leaders across Kashmir valley and extended a curfew in the disputed region for a sixth straight day on Friday to quell pro-independence rallies.
“Shabir Shah was detained during a raid on a hideout,” a police official said. Shah, dubbed by supporters “Kashmir’s Nelson Mandela” for the more than 20 years he spent in prisons for opposing Indian rule, is an executive member of the All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference.
Police have also detained four other leaders, including a woman, since Monday in an effort to defuse protests.
At least 30 Muslim protesters have been killed by security forces in the past three weeks and more than 600 have been injured in demonstrations in the Valley after a land dispute between Muslims and Hindus snowballed into massive independence demonstrations.
Thousands of Indian police and paramilitaries enforced a strict curfew on Friday, officials said. Security forces were out in large numbers on the streets of Srinagar and elsewhere, ordering locals not to leave their homes.
“A strict curfew is in force. Please stay indoors and don’t come out for congregational prayers,” police announced through vehicle-mounted public address systems while patrolling the streets.
Kashmiri leaders had called upon people to hold “peaceful protests” to denounce Indian rule in Kashmir, as well as the arrest of senior separatists and their supporters.
An indefinite curfew was imposed in Kashmir on Sunday, with authorities hoping to prevent further anti-India protests.
Eight people were shot dead during the week for defying the crackdown, and several leaders — including the two most senior figures Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq — have been detained.
Police officials say over 100 of their supporters have also been arrested.—Agencies