Blaze at Sufi shrine triggers violence in Indian Kashmir

A Kashmiri Muslim boy walks past the Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani Shrine, popularly known worldwide as Ghaus-e-Azam or Dastgeer Sahab, on fire in downtown Srinagar, Indian Kashmir, on May 25, 2012.

Local residents stand on the roof as they try to extinguish the fire.

Women wail outside the shrine after it caught fire.

Reuters reports — Fire gutted one of the most revered Sufi Muslim shrines in the Indian part of the divided Kashmir region on Monday sparking clashes between police and angry Muslim protesters, witnesses said. 

At least six people were hurt in Kashmir's main city of Srinagar when police fired teargas at stone-throwing protesters enraged over the destruction of the 350-year-old wooden shrine which housed a relic of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani, an 11th century Sufi saint, police said.

Rioters torched a fire engine and threw stones at firefighters and some members of the media. 

A man tries to put out part of the fire.

Residents battle the fire.

Kashmiri Muslims shout religious slogans after retrieving relics from the burning shrine.

A Kashmiri Muslim schoolboy throws a stone at policemen during a protest after the fire broke out.

A distressed Kashmiri woman outside the shrine.