Most educational institutions shut down in J&K

Amid calls of hanging of rapist as students continue to clash with the police, the authorities in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday shut down most educational institutions in the valley.

Fearing further spurts in violence as the protests took centre-stage after two consecutive rape incidents were reported in Bandipora and Ganderbal districts, colleges in Srinagar city, Baramulla, Sopore, Bandipora, Ganderbal, Anantnag, Kupwara, Badgam and other districts were ordered to remain shut.

Even the higher secondary schools were closed in many towns with vulnerable law and other situation.

The protests were further fuelled on Tuesday after reports of the Ganderbal rape incident surfaced even as the valley was already seething over the May 9 Bandipora case. Police said the Ganderbal incident happened on Sunday.

The students of different educational institutions demanded justice to the victims and stern punishment to the accused as they clashed with the security forces.

Students of Amar Singh (AS) College, Srinagar, carrying placards and banners, staged protests in the college campus. They have been demanding death penalty to the accused.

The students of Kashmir Law College Nowshera Srinagar also took out a protest rally. The MBBS students of SKIMS Medical College in Bemina assembled in the premises and staged protests. They demanded the death penalty to the accused.

The students of various departments of University of Kashmir also took out peaceful protest rally inside the campus on Tuesday so did students of Boniyar Higher Secondary School in Uri in north Kashmir.

Students of Government Degree College Kangan in central Kashmir's Ganderbal district skipped their classes and took out a protest march from the college campus to main market Kangan. The protesters carried placards reading: "Justice for Victim and Hang the Rapist".

Police has already arrested the accused, Muhammad Asif Wani, 20, for allegedly raping a minor girl in his native Haran village of Ganderbal district. The victim is aged around 15 years.

In the Bandipora case too, accused Tahir Ahmed Mir, has been arrested.

A Shia-Sunni coordination committee of religious have also appealed to the people to maintain calm and end protests as police have nabbed culprits in both cases.

--IANS

sq/in