On Tuesday, a number of shopkeepers in south Kashmir’s Anantnag town alleged that ahead of the sixth phase of the District Development Council (DDC), scheduled for Wednesday, they were forced by the police to shut their shops, reported The Kashmiriyat.
In the south Kashmir town, and surrounding areas, shops and business establishments were shut while people remained indoors and traffic off the roads, reported the local news portal.
“Two days ahead of the elections, the police came to us and asked us to shut down our shops in view of the elections scheduled on 16 December,” a shopkeeper from Lal Chowk area of township told The Kashmiriyat.
Another shopkeeper alleged that the policemen went through the markets of the main town and asked the businessmen to keep their shops shut for two days, Tuesday and Wednesday.
“Why is it only in our town that people are being forced to remain inside their homes?” a shopkeeper asked. “The elections are being held everywhere. Every shopkeeper in the town was asked to shut their shops without being informed the exact reason.”
However, the police denied the allegations. The Deputy Inspector General of Jammu Kashmir Police for south Kashmir said, “I have received no complaints of shutdown anywhere. Mobile internet had been shut in the area.”
KK Sidha, Deputy Commissioner of Anantnag, also denied the allegation telling the portal that “the reports are fake, I have more information about my district.”
