The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Srinagar

Indian police say they have issued orders to shoot protesters defying a curfew in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Senior police official Hemant Lohia said the order was given Wednesday following widespread curfew violations the day before in which 15 people were killed.

Violence has roiled the Himalayan region since June 23 when Muslims and Hindus began tit-for-tat protests over a government proposal to transfer land to a Hindu shrine in India's only Muslim-majority state.

"Curfew has to be implemented fully and we've ordered shoot at sight to discourage protests," says Lohia. "This last option becomes the first in order not to let the situation go out of hand."

Meanwhile, Riots erupted across Indian-controlled Kashmir on Wednesday as Muslims mourned 15 people killed in a day of bloody violence, as the protests spread to other parts of India.

Violence has roiled the Himalayan region since June 23 when Muslims and Hindus began tit-for-tat protests over a government proposal to transfer land to a Hindu shrine in India's only Muslim-majority state.

Several thousand protesters took to the streets of Srinagar, the main city in the region, attacking police posts and chanting slogans calling for revenge.

"Blood for blood" and "We want freedom," they chanted as they ransacked sandbagged police bunkers across the city. There were also reports of protests in other cities across Kashmir as special prayers were being held in mosques and homes for those killed on Tuesday, the bloodiest day since the unrest started. Police fired at hundreds of rock-throwing protesters at Fateh Kadal, a suburb in Srinagar, said a police officer on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with media. Three people were wounded, he said. There were no other immediate reports of casualties.

Separatist political leaders called for three days of mourning and urged people to keep their protests peaceful.

"Kashmiris will continue to agitate peacefully and we should not give Indian oppressors any chance to use brute force," said Mirwaiz Omer Farooq, a separatist leader.

On Wednesday, the protests spilled over to other parts of India, with Hindu nationalist groups blocking traffic and railway lines for several hours in New Delhi, Mumbai and the tourist hub of Agra, home to the Taj Mahal.

In New Delhi and Mumbai several dozen activists from the World Hindu Organization, known as the VHP, blocked roads for up to two hours, demanding that the land allocated to the shrine be restored. The plan had been shelved after widespread Muslim protests.

"The central government must give the land to the Amarnath shrine board. Otherwise, our protest will continue," said VHP General Secretary Pravin Togadia, warning that they would launch a "nationwide movement." Some 50 protesters were detained in Mumbai, said police officer Pran Gokhale.

Meanwhile, in Agra, activists blocked railway lines for several hours disrupting rail schedules across northern India, said railway official Nirmal Sharma.