A one-day strike to protest against the arrest of top separatist leader Yasin Malik threw life out of gear Wednesday in Kashmir. Malik, who heads the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and is also an executive member of Kashmir's main separatist alliance, the All-Party Hurriyat Conference, was arrested in Srinagar on Monday. The police action triggered angry protests and clashes between JKLF activists and the security forces which continued on Tuesday after a court ordered Malik remanded into police custody for a week.

The arrest was related to the weekend seizure of $100,000 from two people who police said had confessed to bringing the money illegally into Kashmir for Malik.

Malik, 35, has denied any link to the seized cash. The strike — called by the JKLF and backed by the Hurriyat — closed down shops, banks, post offices and schools in Srinagar, the summer capital of restive Kashmir, and took most vehicles off the roads.

The city's commercial hub Lal Chowk and adjoining areas were all but deserted save for police and Army units patrolling the streets. The strike call was also being observed in other important Kashmir towns like Baramulla, Sopore, Shopian and Pulwama, local residents said.

In a statement Wednesday, the Hurriyat said Malik had been was arrested for "taking revolutionary steps" towards getting the Kashmir issue resolved.

Bureau Report