Srinagar, March 20, KNT: Police on Thursday foiled a “UN Chalo” march organized by the Jammu and Kashmir Mass Movement in Srinagar and detained several activists, including the organization’s chairperson Fareeda Behanji.
According to reports, activists of the group took to the streets to protest alleged enforced disappearances of Kashmiri youth during the years of militancy and attempted to march toward the United Nations office located in the Sonawar area of the city.
The protest march was led by Fareeda Behanji and other members of the organization, who carried placards and banners demanding information about the whereabouts of persons they claimed had disappeared over the past decades.
During the demonstration, activists raised slogans and appealed for international attention to the issue of alleged enforced disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking to reporters, Fareeda Behanji alleged that numerous Kashmiri youth had disappeared during the militancy period and their families were still unaware of their fate.
She also claimed that her father, along with others including Muhammad Sidique Sofi and Javid Ahmed Shala, was allegedly taken into custody by Indian security forces around 12 years ago and that their whereabouts remain unknown.
The organization urged the United Nations to establish an independent international tribunal to investigate alleged human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir.
Police, however, intercepted the march near Abi Guzar in central Srinagar and prevented the activists from proceeding toward the UN office.
Officials said Fareeda Behanji, Abdul Rashid Lone and several women activists were detained and later taken to Police Station Khoti Bagh.
Authorities said the march was stopped to maintain law and order in the area. [KNT]
