Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said only 5% of the people in the Valley were behind the unrest in the state. She blamed those with "vested interests" for provoking the youth to indulge in violence, saying they did not "want peace in Kashmir". "Why should 95% people of Kashmir suffer for the misdeeds of 5%?" she said, according to IANS.

The People's Democratic Party leader, while addressing a gathering in Jammu, said any progress made towards "constructive work" was hampered, urging the Centre to focus on the "majority of peace-loving people". Opposition leaders in the state met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and called for talks on the current situation in Kashmir.

Mufti also praised security personnel deployed in the state for the "restraint they have been exercising", saying a large number of them had been injured since the protests began. The Central Reserve Police Force had said earlier that they had used 13 lakh pellets on protesters in 32 days. At least 68 civilians have died in the clashes that followed the encounter in which Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed.