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Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Indian troops seize relief material, detain, release 60 persons


Srinagar, July 28: In disputed state of Kashmir, police seized huge quantity of relief material raised by the people of Shopian for the residents of Srinagar, who were under curfew and restrictions for last one month, near Sonawar and detained nearly 60 youth.

Policemen seized 40 relief-laden vehicles and detained people in Sonawar and Pantha Chowk areas on Tuesday. The vehicles were carrying rice, vegetables, cooking oil and other essential commodities from Shopian area to Maisuma. “We had pooled essential commodities and dispatched to Srinagar where people are facing shortage of essentials stuff due to curfew and restrictions. But it is unfortunate that police didn’t allow us to distribute the relief among the needy,” said an elderly man from Shopian who was accompanying the relief-laden trucks. “The vehicles were carrying items worth Rs 10 to 12 lakh,” he added.

As soon as the caravan of vehicles entered the city near Pantha Chowk, police raided the vehicles at several places up to Ram Munshi Bagh Police Station.

“We were travelling smoothly,” said Shabir Ahmad Butt, a relief worker of Shopian town. “As we reached near Ram Munshi Bagh Police Station, police stopped us and forced us to enter police station along with vehicles.”

President of Majlis-e-Mashwarat Committee, Shopian, Abdur Rashid Dalal said 40 Tata mobile vehicles were carrying relief. “Twenty-eight vehicles carrying aid were from Shopian town while the rest joined the cavalcade from peripheral villages while travelling toward the city,” said Dalal, who is detained at Ram Munshi Bagh Police Station.

“The relief was organised and transported by people of Shopian. The MMC had no role in the relief sending,” Dalal said. However, after forceful protests in Shopian and Pulwama and the tense mood in Maisuma, police was frced to release the vehicles and all aid workers in shifts after keeping them in police stations for several hours. (Writer-South Asia)