Kashmiri protesters clash with police

Indian police have clashed with hundreds of protesters from the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLA) in Indian-administrated Kashmir.

On Friday, demonstrators in Srinagar and other towns demanded that the body of Mohammed Afzal Guru be returned to his family in Kashmir.

Indian authorities hanged Guru on February 9 in a New Delhi prison for his role in the December 2001 attacks on the Indian parliament. He was buried on the grounds of the prison.

Guru’s execution sparked angry demonstrations in Kashmir, where most people believe he had not gotten a fair trial. Three people died during the demonstrations, including a teenager who was shot by Indian security forces.

On Friday, police fired slingshots and tear gas to disperse the protesters, who were shouting slogans against the Indian government.

The demonstrators also demanded the return of the remains of pro-independence Kashmiri leader Mohammad Maqbool Bhat, who was hanged and buried on the grounds of New Delhi’s Tihar prison on February 11, 1984.

JKLF leader Noor Muhammad Qalwal said Kashmiris wanted the remains returned so the men could be buried in their martyrs’ graveyard.

On December 13, 2001, five gunmen stormed the parliament complex in New Delhi. However, all were shot dead before entering the legislative chamber. Ten other people, mostly security guards, were also killed.

In 2002, an Indian court found Guru guilty of arranging to obtain weapons for the attackers. He denied all the charges against him.

Kashmir lies at the heart of more than 65 years of hostility between India and Pakistan. Both countries claim the region in full but each only has control over a section of the territory.

Over the past two decades, the conflict in Kashmir has left over 47,000 people dead by the official count, although other sources say the death toll could be as high as 100,000.