Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel stands guard in front of closed shops next to the Jamai Masjid in Srinagar February 23, 2019. REUTERS/Danish Ismail
SRINAGAR, India: Police have arrested at least 200 activists seeking the end of Indian rule in disputed Kashmir, escalating fears among already wary residents that a sweeping crackdown could touch off renewed anti-India protests and clashes.
The crackdown comes amid high tension between India and Pakistan following a suicide car bombing of a paramilitary convoy that killed 40 Indian soldiers on Feb. 14.
Police said Saturday that they went to neighborhoods overnight and rounded up the leaders and activists of mainly Jama'at-e-Islami, a political-religious group that espouses the right to self-determination for Kashmir, a
Himalayan territory divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both wholly.
Police gave no reason for the arrests.
