Marchers to NIT stopped at J&K entry point

Dozens of marchers trying to enter Jammu and Kashmir to express solidarity with protesting non-local students of NIT were stopped by authorities on Sunday and urged them call off the march.

The marchers carrying the national flag entered the state at lakhanpur in Kathua district to move to the Valley to express solidarity with the protesting students at National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar.

District administration officials including the district magistrate and the senior superintendent of police (SSP) reached the spot and asked the marchers not to proceed further.

"Without using any force, the officials of the district administration succeeded in persuading the marchers to call off the march," the officials said.

"The marchers insisted they wanted to move to the Valley to hoist the national flag inside the NIT in Srinagar."

"After negotiations, the marchers agreed to hand over the national flag to the district administration officials who promised the flag would be hoisted inside NIT Srinagar on behalf of the marchers," they said.

"After reaching an agreement with the authorities, the marchers moved back to Madhopur (Pathankot) in Punjab"

Tension gripped the NIT Srinagar since April 4 when non-local students shouting "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and carrying th e national flag were stopped by police at the main gate to prevent escalation of tension in the otherwise law and order sensitive Hazratbal area of Srinagar city.

The authorities have rejected the demand of the non-local students to shift the NIT out of the Valley while other demands of the students have been accepted in principle, according to state deputy chief minister, Nirmal Singh.

Students will hold another round of deliberations with Nirmal Singh, state education minister, Naeem Akhtar, three-member team of ministry of human re source development (MHRD), director of NIT Srinagar and other senior civil and police administration officials later on Sunday.