Highway out of bounds for two days in week for troop movement
Leaders of the two Kashmir-based regional parties, the National Conference and the People Democratic Party, on Sunday staged protest demonstrations against ban on movement of civilian vehicle on the national highway between Baramulla and Udhampur and provoked common people to defy the ban in large numbers.
The Jammu & Kashmir Government had earlier announced that the national highway from Baramulla to Udhampur will be put out of bounds for civilian traffic two days in a week — every Sunday and Wednesday — till May 31 to facilitate smooth movement of security convoy.
But as very few people responded to their calls, Kashmiri leaders swiftly changed gears and made fervent appeals to the Government of India to revoke the ban with immediate effect as it is causing lot of hardship to common people.
Meanwhile, large number of vehicles, ferrying security personnel, travelled on the 300-km long Jammu-Srinagar National Highway smoothly amid tight security arrangements. To allow smooth movement of civilians, in special cases only, the district administration in Srinagar had made elaborate arrangements and senior officers were stationed at different locations to facilitate their smooth travel.
Ironically, both the regional parties utilised the occasion to garner votes in support of their party candidates and played ‘smart’ politics.
First PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti stepped out of her home and took out a rally. Second-rung leaders of PDP, accompanied by former MLA, took out a token protest march near Srinagar bypass and demanded immediate revocation of the ban order.
Speaking to reporters, former Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba provoked common people to defy the ban on Srinagar-Jammu highway.
“The road belongs to Kashmiri people and not the Government of India. If the Government of India thinks that they can “suppress” the people of Kashmir by such acts, they are wrong. Mehbooba said, her party will not leave a stone ‘unturned’ to revoke the ban.
“We are also approaching the court in order to revoke the ban, because why would Kashmiris need permission from Government of India to use their own roads,” Mehbooba told reporters.
After PDP’s demonstration was over, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah arrived at Sanat Nagar Chowk in Rawalpora area of Srinagar to lead protest march by NC workers.
“It is a wrong order. They should use train service for the movement of the forces personnel. Or they can allow them to move during the night so that people don’t have to suffer,” demanded Abdullah. “This order should be revoked. It sounds like dictatorship.”
In Wanpoh area of Anantnag district in South Kashmir, NC’s Parliamentary Candidate Justice Hasnain Masoodi along with others took out protest rally against the Government’s decision.
During the protest, leaders also raised slogans against the Government banning the movement of civilian traffic on the highway.
Earlier, the NC’s vice-president who was heading towards the Uri area of Baramulla district on Sunday termed it a “mindless” order because of its inconveniences which lead people to suffer.
“Driving to Uri I’m getting to see first hand the extent of disruption & inconvenience that is being caused to people because of the mindless highway closure order that is in place today,” Omar tweeted.
Peoples Conference Chairman, Sajjad Lone, also gave vent to his ire on the social media. “The highway ban is now turning into a humanitarian disaster. Flooded will calls from across the State. People in dire need to travel in order to tend to their day to day needs of survival stuck in a state of helplessness. @jandkgovernor urgently needs to scrap the inhuman order,” Sajad Lone said on twitter.