By Akinsuroju Olubunmi
Violence erupts over flour prices in Pakistan
Over 100 people were wounded as violence marred protests against the rising prices of flour and electricity in Pakistan. Thousands of residents have taken to the streets over the increase, as the unrest entered its fifth day on Tuesday.
The detention of protest leaders had further fueled the unrest. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered subsidies worth 23 billion rupees ($83m; £65m) on Monday to assuage the protesters, but his request failed to quell the unrest.
The protests have been intensifying since the weekend, leaving three people dead and prompting authorities to cut mobile services. Schools, public transportation, and businesses have been suspended. Authorities said one of the three who died was a police officer.
Paramilitary troops known as rangers were sent into the regional capital, Muzaffarabad, to disperse the agitators. Reports stated that paramilitary troops sent to quell the unrest fired bullets and lobbed tear gas at protesters. Footage of the protests shows both sides hitting one another with rods.
“The rangers should not have shot at the protesters. We were just asking for our rights and got bullet shots in return,” Muhammad Qasim, one of the protesters, told AFP on Tuesday.
The Joint Awami Action Committee, an activist group that initiated the protests, declared Tuesday a “Black Day” to honor those who died.
Pakistani-administered Kashmir is a semi-autonomous region with its own regional government. Kashmir has been a source of conflict between India and Pakistan for more than 70 years.
Protesters, Unrest.
Violence erupts over flour prices in Pakistan