SRINAGAR: The army on Tuesday expressed regret for the death of three civilians in firing by its troops and announced an inquiry into the incident, while a court directed the police to register a case against one of their own for the killing of a Srinagar resident.

The developments marked another day of tension in Kashmir as the toll touched 44, citizens had to go without newspapers despite the end of a three-day publication ban, and CM Mehbooba Mufti faced criticism over her adviser’s claim that she had not approved the media blackout.

In Pakistan, Lashkar-eTaiba founder Hafiz Saeed led a ‘Kashmir Caravan’ from Lahore to Islamabad to protest the deaths in Jammu and Kashmir. With the Nawaz Sharif government planning to observe a “black day to express solidarity with Kashmiris” on Wednesday, strict restrictions are expected to be imposed in the Valley .

Terming the civilian deaths on Monday in south Kashmir’s Qazigund “unfortunate”, a defence spokesman said, “The army deeply regrets the unfortunate loss of life in the incident… where troops were forced to open fire when a mob turned violent, resorting to heavy stone-pelting, and attempted to snatch the weapons of soldiers. An inquiry has been ordered.”

A man and a woman were killed in the firing while another woman succumbed to her injuries on Tuesday. The police also felt the heat as Srinagar chief judicial magistrate Masrat Shaheen ordered an FIR against a deputy superintendent of police accused of killing Shabir Ahmad in cold blood in his house on July 10. Witnesses and sources claimed Ahmad was targeted as he had a history of stone-pelting. His family maintains he was shot at close range.