Separatist leaders, MLA detained as shutdown hits Valley
Srinagar, June 25: Life across the Kashmir Valley was derailed on Monday by a separatist-sponsored shutdown even as the authorities detained senior separatist leaders to prevent their participation in protests.
Shops, public transport, other business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in Srinagar city and other district headquarters of the Valley.
Rail services between Baramulla and Bannihal towns were suspended as a precaution. Internet services were also suspended in south Kashmir areas.
Heavy contingents of police and paramilitary forces were deployed in old city and uptown areas of Srinagar without imposing any restrictions.
The protest was called by the Joint Residence Leadership (JRL), a separatist grouping headed by Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik against civilian killings in Kashmir.
Police took Yasin Malik into preventive custody while Geelani and Mirwaiz Farooq were placed under house arrest.
Independent MLA Engineer Rashid was also taken into preventive custody after he started a protest march from Magarmal Bagh area of Srinagar towards the civil Secretariat on the same issue.
Nearly a dozen of his supporters were also detained by police who intercepted the march.
Meanwhile, a youth sustained a gunshot injury in his thigh on the outskirts of Sopore town during clashes between the security forces and civilian protesters.
The youth was shifted to a local hospital from where he was referred to Srinagar for specialized treatment. Attending doctors have described the condition of the youth as stable and out of danger.
A civilian, Yawar Ahmad Dar, was killed on Sunday in clashes with security forces during an anti-militancy operation in Kulgam district while Shahid Hajam, who was injured in Srigufwara area of Anantnag last week, succumbed to his injuries in a hospital.
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In biggest haul, drugs worth Rs 51 cr seized in Meghalaya, 2 held
Shillong (PTI): The Meghalaya Police seized drugs worth over Rs 51 crore, the biggest haul of narcotics in the state so far, in East Jaintia Hills district and arrested two Mizoram-based persons in this connection, a senior officer said on Saturday.
The seizure was made during a coordinated naka-checking conducted by the police and Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) personnel in the Ratacherra area on Friday, he said.
During the operation, a vehicle with three persons, including the driver, on board was intercepted and searched in accordance with due legal procedures.
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Upon checking, 19 plastic soap cases, containing suspected heroin weighing 203.7 grams, were recovered from the possession of one of the three persons, the officer said.
The search of the vehicle led to the recovery of a blue-coloured trolley bag belonging to another occupant of the vehicle.
Suspected crystal meth (methamphetamine) tablets weighing 10.145 kilograms were found in the bag, the police officer said.
'Meth' tablets are banned in India.
Two of the three occupants of the vehicle were arrested, and a preliminary investigation suggested that they are part of an interstate and cross-border drug trafficking syndicate, the officer said.
"The total value of the seized contraband is estimated to be around Rs 51.13 crore", ANTF chief Vikash Kumar told PTI.
The arrested persons hail from Mizoram, he said.
A case has been registered at the ANTF police station, and an investigation is underway to establish the forward and backward linkages related to the seizure, the officer added.
