Normal life came to a standstill as trade, travel, industry, transport and educational institutions observed a total shutdown to protest the terror attack in Jammu Kashmir's Pahalgam, that killed 26 people.
Across the Valley, political, religious, social and professional organisations condemned the killing of tourists at the famous Baisaran meadow of Pahalgam. Bashir Ahmad Kongposh, General Secretary of the Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Association, told ANI that the complete shutdown was to show a strong condemnation and protest against the Pahalgam terror attack. "Islam doesn't allow such things where people get killed, it is the death of humanity. We want to keep these acts away from the region," Kongposh said.
Protests were held in several parts of Jammu city, with many protesters raising anti-Pakistan slogans and demanding surgical strikes to destroy terror bases in the neighbouring country.
Shops and business establishments remained closed, and public transport was off the roads in response to the shutdown call given by several civil society groups and trade bodies.
Several educational institutions were closed, and attendance was lower than usual in government offices. The Jammu Bar Association also observed shut down against the killings. Several organisations, including the Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Transporters Association, Jammu Bar Association, and the Congress, called for a complete shutdown in Jammu.
In Reasi, hundreds of people took out a march and burnt tyres as a mark of protest.
A shutdown was also observed in Udhampur, Katra, Kathua and Samba.
Business communities in Poonch also held protests, calling for a complete shutdown in response to the terror attack.
On Tuesday, several political parties in Jammu and Kashmir had extended their support to the call for a Kashmir Bandh (shutdown), with the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) appealing to people to make the Bandh a "complete success". Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti expressed solidarity with the victims' families and supported the shutdown, calling it an "attack on all of us."
Security agencies released the sketches of three men suspected to be involved in the terror attack. The men, all three Pakistanis, are Asif Fauji, Suleman Shah and Abu Talha, officials said.
The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow outfit of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group, claimed responsibility for the attack.
