Protests in Kashmir town after burial of guerrillas

Protests erupted in Jammu and Kashmir's Bijbehara town on Tuesday soon after the burial of three militants with some protestors hoisting the Pakistani flag on a wall close to Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed's house.

Soon after the burial of the three Hizbul Mujahideen militants, who were killed in a gunfight with the security forces on Monday, protestors in the town in Anantnag district indulged in heavy stone pelting at the security forces.

Traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway that passes through Bijbehara town, 40 km from here, was halted after angry protestors pelted stones at passing vehicles also.

Police used batons and lobbed tear smoke shells to quell the mob.

Angry youths pelted stones at Sayeed's ancestral home, smashing several window panes.

Some protestors hoisted a Pakistani flag on the compound wall of a house adjacent to Sayeed's residence.

Police exercised restraint to ensure no civilian suffered injuries during law and order management in the town, a senior police officer told IANS here.

The three militants, identified as Arif, Adil and Amir -- all residents of the town, were killed in a brief gunfight with the security forces in Tantraypora (Siligam) village of Anantnag district.

Separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani called for a Valley-wide protest shutdown on Tuesday against the killing of the three militants.