J&K: Schools & colleges shut down after clashes, Omar demands Presidential rule

Srinagar: A day after clashes broke out between school students and Army officials, all the schools and colleges in Jammu and Kashmir have been shut down for a day. More than 200 school students were injured when the security officials retaliated to the stone pelting via tear gas shells. The stone-pelters were all in uniform and belonged to S.P College in the valley. They had their faces covered and blindly threw stones at the Army officials in order to disrupt their work. ABP News image ABP News image The students blocked the Maulana Azad road in Srinagar to protest against the army's action on students in Pulwama, where more than two dozen students got injured. The students of the S.P. College also resorted to stone throwing on security forces and the armed police in which the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Kothibagh police station got injured. Security beefed up after clashes / ABP News image Omar Abdullah seeks Presidential rule: Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday sought Presidential rule should be implemented in the state in the wake of disturbance and unrest. In a string of tweets, Abdullah was seen lashing out at Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and blaming bad governance for the current situation in the valley. “Why could all colleges/universities not have been closed for a few days after the Pulwama clashes? Is @MehboobaMufti not alert to situation?” Omar said in one of his tweets. He also said that “Every day we get more evidence of @MehboobaMufti's complete failure to provide any leadership & direction in J&K leading to this drift.”

Every day we get more evidence of @MehboobaMufti's complete failure to provide any leadership & direction in J&K leading to this drift. https://t.co/RBEaKzOzih

— Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) April 16, 2017

Stone pelting a major issue in valley: Stone pelting has been a major issue in Srinagar for a long time now, which has been disrupting various Army operations and peace measures in Srinagar As per intelligence agency sources, these stone-pelters get their funds from Pakistan which pays them in the form of goods. To site an example, if a truck carrying good worth Rs5 lakh leaves Muzaffarabad for Srinagar, goods worth only Rs 2 lakh would return back to Muzaffarabad; and a cut of Rs 3 lakh would reach the pockets of stone-pelters. As per agencies, if the movement of these vehicles is barred, then the issue of stone-pelting would automatically come to an end and peace would resume in the valley. The secret agencies and the Army is therefore, keeping a close check on the movement of these vehicles and are investigating the exchange of goods between the two countries.