Kashmiris heed strike call as PM visits

SRINAGAR (Reuters) - Shops and businesses closed on Tuesday in Srinagar in response to a strike called by separatists, a day before a planned visit by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The strike, called by hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, marks the 62nd anniversary of New Delhi's rule over the troubled region.

"By observing a strike on October 27 Kashmiris will make it clear to the international community that they are still protesting Indian occupation with vigour," Geelani said in a statement. "October 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 Singh, who is scheduled to inaugurate a railway line in south Kashmir.

After the partition, independent Kashmir, with its largely Muslim population, was expected to go to Pakistan.

Its Hindu ruler, Maharaja Hari Singh, wanted to stay independent but faced a revolt and the threat of an invasion by Muslim tribesman from Pakistan.