JAMMU: An indefinite curfew has entered its twefth day in Kishtwar area of Jammu and Kashmir after communal clashes left three dead and scores wounded.
Police said they have recovered nine guns looted from a gun-shop by rioters Aug 9.
The curfew was relaxed for four hours on Monday, during which the situation remained peaceful with no report of any untoward incident, the IANS reports.
It was relaxed in phases in two parts of the town.
“The situation remained completely peaceful during the curfew relaxation period,” the head of the district administration, Baseer Ahmed Khan told the agency.
The violence started after members of the Hindu community attacked an Eid congregation of Muslims in Kuleed village. Intelligence agencies have told the government that Bajrang Dal, an affiliate of Sangh Parivar, was involved in stoking communal violence there.
Among the three people who were killed, two died of bullet wounds while one was burnt alive.
The role of Village Defence Committees, civilian groups armed by the government to fight militants, has come into question for allegedly using their weapons.
But police say they have also recovered nine of the 22 guns looted from a local gun-shop and then used by rioters.
Some people have been arrested in this connection, police officers told the IANS.
An all-party delegation comprising representatives of the regional National Conference (NC), the Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party, Samajwadi Party, Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Shiromani Akali Dal, Bahujan Samaj Party and Nationalist Congress Party reached the town to hold talks between the two communities and defuse tension.
The main opposition, People’s Democratic Party has called the delegation a “political stunt” by the ruling National Conference.
“The main opposition party is not a part of the delegation,” said PDP leader, Syed Asghar Hussain.
