Even as army staged a flag march in curfew-bound Srinagar today, people took to the streets and staged demonstrations at several places in Sopore and Baramulla while in the rest of the valley including old city here people thronged Mosques and raised pro-freedom slogans.
The scene of slogan shouting people at places of worship were a reminder of the early 1990s when militancy erupted in Kashmir and people raised pro-freedom slogans at Mosques and shrines.
Barring Pattan, 30 kms from here in Baramulla district, where groups of youth resorted to stone pelting, demonstrations at main chowk Sopore, Chankan, Ashpir, Amargarh, Cemet Bridge, Khwaja Bagh, Old Town Baramulla, Kreeri, Palhallan, and Jamia Kadeem remained peaceful, police sources said.
People in Batmaloo, Chattabal, Rambagh in uptown and almost entire downtown came to Mosques and shrines in the morning and raised pro-freedom slogans throughout the day, the sources said.
However, barring a minor protest in Nowgam area of Budgam district and the brief blockade of Srinagar-Bandipora road at Malroo, nine km from here, which was later quelled as the police burst tear gar shells, the situation remained normal and no casualties were reported, an official spokesman said.
Army whose services were requisitioned by the state last night in the wake of killing of three persons in Srinagar, moved in and staged a flag march at 10.30 am on Srinagar-Airport road and later moved to Lal Chowk.
"The situation is normal, the curfew is in place. We are prepared for everything and are here to help the police, the CRPF and the administration. We will be available within minutes whenever our need arises," army spokesperson Colonel JS Brar told PTI.
