Thousands of people have been detained in Indian Kashmir over fears of outbreaks of unrest after New Delhi stripped the restive region of its autonomy two weeks ago,
A magistrate speaking to Agence France-Presse (AFP) on condition of anonymity said at least 4,000 people were arrested and held under the Public Safety Act (PSA), a controversial law that allows authorities to imprison someone for up to two years without charge or trial.
“Most of them were flown out of Kashmir because prisons here have run out of capacity,” the magistrate said, adding that he had used a satellite phone allocated to him to collate the figures from colleagues across the Himalayan territory amid a communications blackout imposed by authorities.
A police official who asked to remain anonymous also told AFP “around 6,000 people were medically examined at a couple of places in Srinagar after they were detained”.
Authorities have repeatedly declined to provide a tally of how many people have been taken into custody.
The heavy overnight clashes took place mostly in Rainawari, Nowhetta and Gojwara areas of the old city where Indian troops fired tear smoke, chilli grenades and pellets to disperse protesters, eyewitnesses and officials said.
Indian authorities reimposed restrictions on movement in major parts of Srinagar on Sunday after violent overnight clashes between residents and police in which dozens were injured
