Authorities not to allow proposed Hurriyat rally tomorrow

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Srinagar, May 20 : Authorities here tonight decided not to allow the proposed rally of moderate Hurriyat Conference headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at Eidgah in downtown Srinagar in view of killing of Maulvi Showkat Ahmad Shah last month.
The decision not to allow the rally at Eidgah, held every year to pay tributes to slain separatist leaders Mirwaiz Mohammad Farooq and Abdul Gani Lone, was taken at a high level meeting of police, intelligence and civil administration officials here, official sources said.
They said there were "apprehensions that elements inimical to peace and stability in Kasmir" might take advantage of the large gathering to target the leaders present there.
They said keeping in view the killing of Jamiat-e-Ahli Hadees chief outside a mosque at Maisuma last month and killing of Abdul Gani Lone at a similar rally in 2002, it was decided that no congregation will be allowed at Eidgah.
The sources said large number of police and paramilitary CRPF personnel have been deployed in five police station areas in old city to prevent any gathering of people.
Earlier in the day, Mirwaiz had announced that Hurriyat Conference will lay a foundation for a Martyrs� Memorial at the Eidgah graveyard.
The Hurriyat Chairman claimed that senior civil administration and police officials visited his residence and asked him not to go ahead with the construction of the memorial.
"I told the officials that every nation has a memorial for their martyrs and we are going to have one for ours. We are not going to call of the programme," he said.