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SRINAGAR, India— Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir have fired tear gas and used batons to break up religious processions marking the Muslim month of Muharram.

Authorities imposed a curfew in Lalchowk, the commercial hub of disputed Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar, fearing the religious processions Wednesday could morph into anti-India protests.

However, clashes erupted when police attempted to stop groups of Muslims who tried to break the curfew and hold processions at several places in the city.

Residents of Indian-controlled Kashmir have often defied bans on large public gatherings since the outbreak of an armed insurgency in 1989 demanding the Himalayan region’s independence from India, or its merger with neighboring Pakistan.

AP