After being confined to their homes for days, people in Kashmir offered Friday prayers in their local mosques as restrictions were eased for the purpose, official said, adding the Valley was largely peaceful barring minor incidents of stone-pelting in north Kashmir’s Sopore.
People, who have been virtually been kept indoors because of heavy security deployment in the wake of removal of special status for Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the State, were allowed to go to mosques in their localities without any questions from security personnel.
With no untoward incident, the situation, as of now, was reported to be fine in the Srinagar and south Kashmir, officials said, but added that reports from all areas are yet to arrive.
The officials said there were minor incidents of stone-pelting in Sopore town of north Kashmir, 50 km from Srinagar, but was contained immediately and the crowd dispersed.
The decision to ease the restrictions was taken after National Security Advisor Ajit Doval directed authorities to ensure that no Kashmiri is harassed, they said. Mr. Doval, who has been camping in Srinagar since August 6, spoke to residents and security personnel during a quick tour of the sensitive downtown area in Srinagar on August 9, an official said.
The NSA, accompanied by his aides and senior police officers, visited the Eidgah locality and stopped at various places to interact with residents. He later spoke to police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel.
Security forces have been put on high alert across the Kashmir Valley pre-empting possible protests against the scraping of special status to Jammu and Kashmir and dividing it into two Union Territories, another set of officials said.
The clampdown in Kashmir was imposed in the early hours of August 5, hours before the Centre revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and split it into two union territories — Ladakh, and Jammu and Kashmir.
Security forces have been deployed in massive numbers across the Valley, particularly in Srinagar city and major towns, and barricades have been erected every 100 metres and only people allowed to pass are those with medical emergencies.
All telephone and Internet connections have been snapped in the Valley and only three news channels, including the state-run Doordarshan, can be accessed through cable TV networks.
Residents had stocked up essentials like food grains, fuel and medicines in the run-up to the August 5 announcement by Home Minister Amit Shah in the Rajya Sabha about revoking provisions of Article 370.
During easing of restrictions in some parts of the city, especially in the civil line areas on August 8, the movement of the people remained thin, while a few shops mostly selling vegetables and medicines opened.