Kishtwar : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah accepted the resignation of Minister of State for Home Sajjad Kitchloo on Monday, who had resigned while taking the responsibility of the communal violence that has gripped Kishtwar district here.
Since last Friday violent clashes rocked the Kuleed area of Kishtwar district which left three persons dead and 20 others injured.
“I have received Sajad Kitchloo’s resignation asking to be relieved of his responsibilities pending the outcome of the judicial inquiry,” Omar wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter.
Meanwhile, the state Governor NN Vohra also accepted Kitchloo’s resignation, an official statement said.
Omar also ordered a judicial inquiry headed by a retired High Court judge to establish the truth behind the violence.
Kitchloo had earlier submitted his resignation to Omar pending the outcome of the judicial probe ordered by the state government.
However, Kichloo maintained that he was innocent and had done nothing wrong. Still he tendered his resignation so that a free and fair probe can be done in this case.
According to reports, Kichloo, an MLA from Kishtwar, was present in the Kuleed area when the violent clashes began in the town during the Eid celebrations. Despite the MLA’s presence, no senior police official tried to control the situation when the riots began.
Apart from the above incident, fresh clashes broke out today in another area of Kishtwar. Locals residing in Hidyal area defied curfew and started to protest as police had arrested a youth who was allegedly involvement in the communal violence.
Protesters got violent when police tried to stop them. More trouble was caused when police tried to stop women protesters from marching and violating curfew which has been imposed from past four days. During this agitation at least 10 people got hurt, including an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) as cops resorted to lathicharge and teargas shelling.
Meanwhile, curfew remained in force in six districts of Jammu region amid deployment of Army. In all, 11 people have been arrested in connection with the violence in Kishtwar.
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