Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday sought support from the local population to help restoration of peace and order in Kashmir after two weeks of continued public protests, separatist-sponsored shutdown and clampdown by the Government crippled the normal life.
Massive protests were on in Batamaloo area of Capital Srinagar when the Union Minister landed in the region for his two-day visit aimed at reaching out to the people.
The prominent trade bodies in Srinagar refused to meet the Home Minister. However, as many as 15 delegations, including Imams of various mosques, representatives of Sikh and Hindu minorities, employee unions and motorboat operators met the Home Minister. Sources said the Home Minister assured the delegations that their genuine demands would be looked into after the situation returns to normal in Valley. He sought their help in restoring peace and order in the region.
State Congress president G A Mir announced his party has declined to attend Sunday's meeting with the Union Home Minister.
The Home Minister arrived at 11 am and drove straight to high-security Nehru Guest House overlooking Dal lake in Srinagar to meet the delegations.
The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), an amalgam of over a dozen trade unions, decided not to meet the Union Minister, saying "it would serve no purpose when the killing of innocent people was unabated and scores of people continue to be injured by bullets and pellets". Two civil society groups also declined to meet the Union Minister.
However, around 15 delegations of civil society groups and traders, which included tour operators, hotel industry representatives, youths, fruit growers of south Kashmir, Kashmiri Pandits, Sikhs, a group of Imams, former IAS officers and motorboat operators met the Union Minister.
Official sources said Rajnath Singh asked the delegations for free and fair feedback and suggestions to bring back normalcy in the Kashmir. They said Home Minister gave patient hearing to the delegates and assured meeting their demands in due course of time.
The Home Minister also held meetings with top security officers of the State. Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who had gone to north Kashmir's Kupwara District to meet the families of some of the victims of recent violence, will meet the Home Minister later in the evening.
He is also meeting Governor NN Vohra on Saturday, while delegations of political parties are scheduled to interact with him on Sunday. leader of Opposition Omar Abdullah is also scheduled to meet him on Sunday even as Congress has declined the invitation to meet the visiting Minister.
The Home Minister's visit came at a time when normal life continued to remain crippled in the valley after massive protests in the region on July 8 as a result of security forces killing top Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani and his two associates at Kokernag in south Kashmir. Officials confirm that 45 civilians, including three women have been killed by police and security forces to stymie the public uprising. A policeman threatened by protesters was also drowned in river. Around 3,000 protesters and bystanders have been injured by the security forces and 200 of them have received pellet injuries threatening them vision impairment.
An official spokesman said that 2252 people with minor and major injuries have been treated in various hospitals in past 10 days. Out of them, 2144 have been discharged after treatment and 104 injured people are currently admitted in the hospitals, undergoing treatment.
Doctors in various hospitals have conducted 359 surgeries. Out of 197 civilians, who received injuries in eye, 160 have been operated upon. At present, there are 32 such patients admitted in various hospitals in Srinagar receiving further treatment for eye related injuries.
At the instance of Chief Minister, the Government made special arrangements to send five patients to AIIMS New Delhi for further specialised treatment. Out of them, four patients have already been shifted to AIIMS where they are being treated by Specialists at Rajinder Prasad Institute of Ophthalmic Sciences.
Meanwhile, the authorities lifted curfew from four districts of the valley but continued the restrictions on public movement in most parts of south Kashmir and capital Srinagar.
Protests erupted in Batamaloo area in Srinagar on Saturday morning, compelling the authorities to re-impose curfew.
A police spokesman said that the situation throughout the Kashmir valley remained peaceful and under control. "There were no reports of any untoward incident from anywhere in the valley, except for some stray stone pelting incidents from Karan Nagar, Reck Chowk, Chanapora in Srinagar, Fatehpora in Ganderbal, Chadoora in Budgam, Bomai in Sopore, Kakapora, Tahab in Pulwama, Srigufwara in Anantnag and Padgampora Bahu in Awantipora," the spokesman said.