The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Saturday refuted a Reuters report on protests in Kashmir due to scrapping of Article 370.In astatement, an MHA spokesperson said that the reports of protest involving10,000 people in Srinagar was completely incorrect. "There are media reports claiming there was a protest involving 10,000 people in Srinagar. This is completely fabricated and incorrect. There have been a few stray protests inSrinagar/Baramulla and none involved a crowd of more than 20 people," the spokesperson said. Earlier, Reuters had reported that at least 10,000 people had protested in Srinagar on Friday, according to a police official and two witnesses said.

A large group of people gathered in Srinagar's Soura area, a police officer said, in violation of orders that prohibit the assembly of more than four people, Reuters had reported.

The crowd was pushed back by police at Aiwa bridge, where awitness said tear gas and pellets were used against them. "Some women andchildren even jumped into the water," a witness said at Srinagar'sSher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, where pellet victims were admitted."There were around 10,000 people at the protest in Soura,"the police officer said. "This was the biggest so far."

On Friday, the administration in Jammu and Kashmir had eased prohibitory orders to allow Friday prayers in local mosques and for people tomake arrangements for Monday's Eid celebrations.The administration has liftedprohibitory orders from Jammu region, and asked schools to reopen from Saturday. Jammu and Kashmir was put under complete lockdown on August 11, a daybefore the government of India revoked Article 370 that gave special status tothe state.