On August 22, a sizable contingent of local youth in Jammu stopped the Jammu-Pathankot highway at Raya Morh and staged a demonstration in support of the release of Yuva Rajput Sabha (YRS) leaders who are currently being held in police custody in the Samba district.
Some of the demonstrators reportedly threw stones at the police as they attempted to persuade them to allow for the restoration of vehicle traffic on the roadway near Raya Morh in Samba.
However, some of the unruly adolescents threw stones, forcing the police to employ smoke grenades to disperse the crowd. The police dispersed the demonstrators after they had blocked the roadway for more than two or three hours.
The SSP Samba, Benam Tosh said, “The highway is clear, and the situation is fully under control,” after the dispersal of the demonstrators.
In the meanwhile, the Beopar Mandal Samba has declared a bandh for Wednesday (up until 1 PM), calling for the release of the YRS leaders who have been imprisoned.
Following the implementation of Section 144 of the CrPC in the protest-hit region (Sarore) on Monday night, the police detained the YRS leaders at the Saroore Toll Plaza protest dharna location.
However, things became ugly in the morning as people launched nonviolent protest marches against the detention of YRS leaders in several locations. The arrested YRS leaders, on the other side, said in a video that they would embark on a hunger strike. However, their assertion could not be verified.
As the news circulated, it provoked demonstrations, and residents in the Samba area stopped the highway close to Raya Morh and demanded the release of YRS leaders from police arrest.
During a sit-in outside Raya Morh in Samba, one of the protestors screamed, “The authorities should release the detained leaders within two hours.”
Vehicles were left trapped on the highway during this demonstration while the Saroore Toll Plaza remained open despite purportedly suffering minor damage from stone pelting on Monday during the demonstration.
In critical places, such as Sarore Toll Plaza and protest-hit regions, a sizable detachment of J&K police and paramilitary force members were deployed to prevent any form of law and order scenario. However, there hasn’t been any unfavourable news to date.
Senior Advocate Vikram Sharma, president of the J&K High Court Bar Association (JKHCBA), Jammu, urged the NHAI of India to take seriously the legitimate complaints of the general public and commuters on the Jammu-Kathua segment of the national highway regarding the imposition of tolls from Sarore Toll Plaza despite the fact that the section of highway has been damaged by recent flooding and is unfit for use.
