Police on Tuesday detained a couple of Shia mourners at Srinagar’s Jehangir Chowk as they defied restrictions and tried to take out a Muharram procession. Policemen also cane-charged media persons covering the procession.
The traditional Muharram procession used to pass through the areas of Abi Guzar, Lal Chowk and Dalgate but has been banned since terrorism erupted in 1990 as authorities maintain that the religious gathering has been used for propagating separatist politics.
Policemen also lathicharged the mourners and burst teargas shells to chase them away.
Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar said “We respect the religious sentiments of all but at the same time it is also our joint responsibility to defeat the ill designs of vested interests who try to disturb the peaceful atmosphere”.
As the photo and video journalists were taking pictures of the procession, police swung into action and thrashed them, the scribes claimed.
They said the policemen, armed with batons, also thrashed some of the journalists and caused damage to their equipment. Pictures and videos of the incident were uploaded on various social media platforms as the journalists protested the police action.
Kashmir Press Photographers Association (KPPA) condemned the use of force by police. KPPA termed the police action “unjustified and uncalled for”.
Meanwhile, National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah tweeted that the police action was unfortunate and expressed hope that Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha will ensure such incidents are not repeated.
“Very unfortunate to see J&K police personnel mercilessly thrashing journalists in Srinagar. These people were simply doing their jobs—reporting the news. They don’t make the news & they don’t engineer events to create the story. I hope @officeofLGJ&K will ensure no repeat”.
Very unfortunate to see J&K police personnel mercilessly thrashing journalists in Srinagar. These people were simply doing their jobs – reporting the news. They don’t make the news & they don’t engineer events to create the story. I hope @OfficeOfLGJandK will ensure no repeat. https://t.co/d7ycL0rTPL
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) August 17, 2021
He also demanded that an independent photojournalist be compensated for the loss as his equipment was damaged allegedly in the police action.
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Lone also criticized the police action.