Highway ban: Justice (Retd) Hasnain Massodi stages sit-in along with NC colleagues, PDP protests too

Srinagar: National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party staged separate protest against the ban on civilian traffic on highway from Udhampur to Baramulla.
Justice (Retd) Hasnain Massodi along with party’s other senior leaders including form MLA Abdul Majeed Larmi and Peer Mohammad Hussain staged a sit-in protest on the strategic highway near Wanpoh in Anantnag area of South Kashmir.
They were shouting slogans against the government for banning the movement of civilian traffic on the thoroughfare, the only surce link connecting Kashmir Valley with rest of the world.
Meanwhile, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also took out a protest rally near Athwagan area of Srinagar against the ban. A contingent of police stopped them from proceeding forward.
On April 3, the government banned civilian traffic from dawn to dusk for two days every week on the Highway stretch from Udhampur in Jammu to Baramulla in North Kashmir to “facilitate the movement of government forces convoys.”
The measure has been adopted to facilitate unhindered movement of government forces’ convoys to eliminate the possibility of fidayeen attacks during the ongoing poll process, said government in an official order issued here. The ban on civilian traffic would be effective from Baramulla to Udhampur through Srinagar, Qazigund, Jawahar-Tunnel, Banihal and Ramban, the notification said. The ban would be in force on the two days from 4 am to 5 pm, it added. In case of any emergency requiring passage of civilian vehicle, the police and administrative officials would take appropriate decisions in line with the provisions of movement of civilian traffic during curfews, the notification said.