Baramulla: Violent protests have returned to Kashmir as two people were killed in police firing in Baramullah on Monday. This was triggered by allegations that the police had misbehaved with the wife of a suspect they arrested.
This comes just days after lengthy protests in Shopian over the alleged rape and murder of two women and created more trouble for Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
The demonstrations began after a local woman Hasina accused the police of attempting to molest her and demanding a bribe when she went to the station to get her husband Mohammad Yousuf released. Yousuf had been arrested for a kidnapping.
"Police are harassing us and have demanded Rs 50,000," Hasina said.
A magisterial probe has been ordered and curfew imposed, but the police say the allegations are baseless.
A beleaguered Chief Minister refused to comment, but calming tempers will be his biggest challenge. The Valley is already tense more than a month after the rape and murder of two women in Shopian; their attackers are yet to be identified.