13 people were arrested by Jammu and Kashmir police on Saturday, including two instigators, for shouting pro-azadi slogans during Friday prayers at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid.
The police also claimed that the protests had a Pakistani connection. Senior Superintendent of Police Rakesh Balwal said in a statement, ‘During the initial investigation, [we learnt that] instructions had come from Pakistani handlers of terror outfits to disrupt the Friday prayer and create a law and order situation,’
The mosque in Srinagar’s old centre was only recently reopened for prayers after being closed for nearly two years. The police filed a case of sedition and criminal trespass after the sloganeering. ‘After the prayers, about a dozen people shouted anti-national and provocative slogans for a while…Most of the crowd remained aloof. Volunteers of the managing committee tried to stop the sloganeering and hooliganism, leading to clashes,’ Balwal said.
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