Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired an high-level meeting to review the situation in the Kashmir Valley as the curfew remained in force in many parts of the state, including pockets of Srinagar city and Pulwama district. Home Minister Rajnath Singh has also postponed his visit to the US to attend the Indo-US Homeland Security Dialogue scheduled for next week.

“We have seen reports of the clashes between protesters and Indian forces in Kashmir, and are concerned by the violence. We encourage all sides to make efforts towards finding a peaceful resolution,” a US State Department spokesman said.

The death toll in clashes between protesters and security forces reached at 24. Adding to this, over 350 persons, including more than 115 security force personnel, have been injured in clashes and militant attacks.

A group of Imams meets Home Minister Rajnath Singh and urge him to restore calm in the Kashmir Valley. Minister of State in the PMO Jitendra Singh, said that, “PM has been keeping a close wtach on the sequence of events.”

The meeting was attended by Home Minister Rajnath Singh,  External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj,Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Minister of State for PMO Jitendra Singh,  Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar among others.

The United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon calls on all parties to exercise “maximum restraint” to avoid further violence in Kashmir. A statement issued by Mr. Ban’s spokesperson, said that, “The Secretary-General is closely following the recent clashes in Kashmir. He regrets the reported loss of dozens of lives and the injuries to many others.”

Also Read: Kashmir violence: Death toll reaches 23, life paralyzed for third day

Nandini