Shops and businesses closed on Tuesday in Indian Kashmir's main city in response to a strike called by separatists, a day before a planned visit by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The strike, called by hard-line separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, marks the 62nd anniversary of New Delhi's rule over the troubled region. “By observing a strike on Oct. 27 Kashmiris will make it clear to the international community that they are still protesting Indian occupation with vigor,” Geelani said in a statement. “Oct. 27 is a black day for Kashmir.” The former independent state has been disputed by India and Pakistan since they won independence from Britain in 1947 after a bloody partition. The two countries have fought two of their three wars over the region. The streets in Srinagar, Kashmir's summer capital, and other major towns in the Muslim-majority valley were largely deserted, witnesses said. The strike closed most of the schools and colleges. The Indian army marks the event as “Martyrs' Day.” Geelani called for a complete shutdown on Wednesday during a visit by Manmohan Singh, who is scheduled to inaugurate a railway line in south Kashmir.
