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Musharaf's Victory Celebrated in Kashmir

By Fayaz Wani

Srinagar, Oct 7: The supporters of moderate faction of Huriyat Conference today celebrated the victory of Parvez Musharraf in Pakistani presidential polls. They had firecrackers and raised pro-Pakistan and pro-Musharraf slogans in Srinagar. The celebrations caused chaos, panic among the shoppers in Srinagar as they feared it as "fidayeen attack", and ran for safety.

At around 1545 hours, when people in large numbers were busy in shopping in Srinagar, a group of boys led by supporters of moderate faction Huriyat Conference - a conglomerate of separatist group - surfaced with crackers and green flags near Ganta-Ghar in the heart of city centre. The group began to burst firecrackers and the sound of its bursting created panic and chaos among the people busy in shopping. They thought the firecrackers were gunshots and began to run for safety. The non-locals, who were also enjoying shopping, too began to run for safety. The vehicular traffic on the otherwise busy Residency Road came to halt with people taking the firecrackers as fidayeen attack.

However, within minutes the normalcy was restored as people came to know that a group of boys was bursting firecrackers and celebrating victory of Parvez Musharraf in Pakistani presidential poll. Parvez Musharraf won the presidential polls in Pakistan yesterday, but his victory has not been announced yet on the directions of Supreme Court.

Besides bursting the firecrackers, the group of youth was raising pro-Musharraf and pro-Pakistan slogans and they were being provided security by police personnel. A police vehicle was following them. Carrying the green flags and the pictures of Parvez Musharraf, some of the boys also danced on the tunes of pro-Pakistan rhymes.

The firecrackers and pro-Pakistan slogans by the group of boys lasted for nearly half an hour.

It is pertinent to mention here that the moderate faction of Huriyat Conference supports Pakistani military ruler, Parvez Musharraf and his four-point formulae on Kashmir.

Fayaz Wani reports on life in Srinagar, Kashmir.