Peaceful Diwali expected in valley during two days of ‘normalcy’

SRINAGAR - Jammu and Kashmir’s summer capital Srinagar and the rest of the Kashmir Valley are expected to be peaceful for two more days beginning Thursday as the separatists have deferred their shutdown and the authorities too have shunned curfew.

No curfew has been imposed anywhere in the valley today, a police officer said here Thursday.

Shops, business establishments, public transport, banks, post offices, educational institutions and government offices were functioning normally.

Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has deferred his protest shutdown for two days beginning Thursday in response to appeals of the non-Muslim locals to allow Diwali celebrations.

For over four months now, the hardline separatist Hurriyat group has been spearheading the Quit Kashmir campaign, adversely affecting life in the valley.

The group has been issuing protest calendars on a weekly basis during this period, calling for shutdowns, protests and marches to mount pressure on the government.

A total of 110 people have lost their lives in clashes between the protestors and the security forces in the last four months.

Although the authorities say life has started returning to normal across the Valley, and the separatist campaign has run out of steam, the common people, particularly traders and students, have been the worst victims this year, facing frequent disruptions due to these shutdowns.