Jammu and Kashmir Police allegedly resorted to lathicharge Wednesday after protests over a proposed ropeway to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine intensified, leading to a 72-hour shut down in Katra town. Led by the Katra Sangharsh Samiti, the protests are seeing several locals, including shopkeepers, owners of eateries and operator of ponies and palkis, protest against the proposed Rs 300 crore Katra-Sanjichhat ropeway that is meant to bypass the old Katra-Banga-Adi Kunwari route of the Vaishno Devi pilgrimage. According to samiti leaders, the protest march was stopped by cops, leading to a scuffle between the two sides. Several protesters were detained, they said. The protests came after samiti claimed that their talks with the Reasi district administration and the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board had failed to lead to conclusive results, with the administration now seeking more time to consult the higher authorities. On its part, the samiti has accused the administration of “derailing” talks, former minister Jugal Kishore Sharma told The Indian Express. “The ropeway will adversely affect those people whose livelihoods depend on the pilgrims taking the old route,” a spokesperson from the samiti said. Local police officials admitted they had to resort to “mild lathicharge” after the protesters insisted on carrying on with their march, “which had the potential to disturb law and order situation”. They, however, said nothing about the alleged detentions. “The matter pertained to Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine Board and the proposed ropeway did not fall within the domain of the district administration. It was only facilitating talks between officials of the shrine board and the protestors,” a local police officer said. Meanwhile, while Katra town wore a deserted look Wednesday, it was business as usual at the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, with hotels remaining open to pilgrims. Sources claimed that samiti has asked hotels to accommodate only those pilgrims that had bookings. “We have told them not to take new bookings as the agitation may be a long one,” one samiti leader said. The proposed ropeway aims to reduce the journey time on the 14 km trek to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, and is meant to connect Tarakote, on the outskirts of Katra, with Sanjichhat, located 2.5 km from the shrine.
