Defying curfew, thousands marched towards Srinagar city to attend the funeral of Hurriyat leader Sheikh Abdul Aziz who was among those killed in police firing yesterday — with two more persons succumbing to injuries, the death toll in police firing in the Valley in two days climbed to 19.

Separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik were present at the funeral of Aziz. They later addressed the crowd, calling for “peaceful protests” until August 15 and a “complete blackout” on Independence Day.

On the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad highway, authorities barricaded the stretch ahead of Baramulla, felling trees to prevent people from heading towards the Line of Control — they were protesting the “economic blockade” of the Valley by those agitating in Jammu for transfer of land to the Amarnath shrine board.

In the Uri sector, securitymen stopped hundreds just two kilometres short of the Line of Control. Residents of the border villages of Nambla, Garcot, Silikote, Basgrain, Chrunda and Uri began marching towards Silikote, the closest point to get to the LoC. But security forces stopped the march near Sadpora.

Later, the protestors left for Salamabad to try and cross the LoC through Kaman but they were again stopped, this time in Uri town. Protestors threatened to snap power lines and even hurled stones at the residential quarters of the NHPC which manages the Uri power project.

The scale of the protests have lifted separatist hopes — Pakistani flags fluttered in the processions today and people raised pro-Pakistan and Azadi slogans.

DGP Kuldeep Khuda said: “There were 33 processions today. People were angry, especially because of what happened yesterday. There were four incidents of firing in Srinagar city while forces opened fire at three other places. We have exhibited maximum restraint. Two of our sub-divisional police officers, including a young IPS officer, an SHO and 192 police and paramilitary force personnel were injured. The protestors burnt three of our vehicles and damaged 33 other government vehicles”.

After the killing of Aziz, the authorities clamped curfew. The body of Aziz was kept at the Grand Mosque in Srinagar where hundreds stayed overnight. Early this morning, a procession, proceeding from Bandipore, was stopped by security forces at Paribal. Four persons were killed in the firing and eight others seriously injured. At Ushkura in Baramulla, one person was killed when another procession was fired upon.

As word spread, it infuriated people who had already started marching towards Srinagar from adjoining districts for the funeral of Aziz. In Srinagar city, people, heading for the Jamia mosque at Rainawari, clashed with securitymen who later opened fire, killing one person. Another person was killed at Saidakadal, just a mile away. In Baghimehtab, two persons, including cameraman Javaid Ahmad Mir, were killed when a procession was fired upon.

At Lasjan on the outskirts of Srinagar, people from villages in Pampore and Pulwama were fired upon and three persons died. Police said that a personal security officer of a PDP leader had opened fire, even causing injuries to an IPS officer, Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar, and two CRPF men.