Srinagar, Dec 15 (IANS) Kashmir Valley was in ferment Tuesday following violent protests over the CBI probe report into the deaths of two young women in Shopian as angry youth took to the streets and pelted stones at security forces. Over two dozen people, including police, were left wounded.
Angry youth shouted slogans against the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) that has ruled out rape and murder of the two young women and said the deaths in May, that had led to huge unrest, were due to drowning.

In its 66-page probe report submitted to the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Monday, the CBI said the two women - Neelofar Jan, 22, and her 17-year-old sister-in-law Asiya Jan - died due to accidental drowning in Rambiara Nallah (drain) near Zawoora Bridge May 29. Also, there was no evidence of suicidal drowning as no note or motive has emerged.

Demonstrators took to the streets in several areas and indulged in heavy stone pelting on the police and paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

The security forces initially responded by using batons to disperse the mobs, but as the youth continued to re-group in lanes and by-lanes of Maisuma, Batmallo, Danderkhah, Nowgam in uptown and other old city localities, they used tear gas to chase away the protesters.

It was almost an action replay when similar protests broke out in June. At that time angry protestors took to the streets for almost a week. Normal life was paralysed then and citizens clashed with CRPF personnel in downtown Srinagar as part of the separatist-sponsored strike over the raging issue.

A senior police officer on Tuesday said over two dozen people, including five policemen, were injured in the clashes.

Reports of clashes between protesters and police were also received from the two north Kashmir towns of Baramulla and Sopore.

In its report presented to the high court, the CBI accused 13 people - six doctors, five lawyers and two civilians - of fabricating a false case.

The CBI report says the doctors gave false post-mortem reports and sent slides that had been tampered with for DNA examination. It absolved four police officers arrested for destroying evidence, saying the charges against them had not been substantiated.

“There was nothing suggestive of penetration of any penis-like object through the hymeneal opening as the hymen was found intact. Neelofar Jan’s death was also caused due to asphyxia as a result of anti-mortem drowning. There were no external ante-mortem injuries on the body,” the CBI report, a copy of which is with IANS, said.

In Shopian town, 65 km from here, where the bodies of Asiya Jan, 17, and her sister-in-law Neelofar Jan, 22, were found by the side of a stream on May 30 this year, hundreds of locals including women staged protests denouncing the CBI report and demanding the arrest of the “culprits”.

The town has been tense since Monday after the CBI presented its 66-page report in the state high court which stated the two young women had died due to drowning in the stream.

A complete strike was observed in Kashmir Valley Tuesday on a call given by the Shopian Majlis Mushawarat, which was supported by the two groups of the Hurriyat Conference.

The Majlis has rejected the report and announced that a “struggle to seek justice in the case will continue”.

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) described the report as “trumped up” to prove Chief Minister Omar Abdullah correct. Abdullah, in his first reaction to the death of the two women, had stated that they died due to drowning in the stream.

The deaths had sparked off widespread anger and protests in Kashmir amid allegations that the women were raped and murdered.