APHC leaders Syed Ali Shah Gilani and Maulvi Omer Farooq were placed under house arrest by Indian security forces on Sunday while they were leading a protest rally towards Muzaffarabad against restrictions imposed by the Hindu trade mafia in concert with the government on the movement of goods. The blockade of the main road connecting the Valley to the rest of the region could prove to be disastrous since that serves to transport food and other products. And if the goods cannot be exported, it would cause a huge monetary loss to Kashmiri merchants. The leaders however have given a fresh call for a march on Monday to cross over into Azad Kashmir in protest at this financial blackmailing. The situation in the disputed Valley seems once again to be deteriorating, the responsibility for which very obviously lies with the government's mismanagement. There has been an upsurge of violence against the people by the Indian security forces. The discovery of mass graves is a case in point. Last month, the Kashmiris were protesting against the illegal transfer of hundreds of acres of land to a Hindu Shrine Board for building structures for Hindu yatrees. The subsequent riots that rocked the Valley were among the biggest in Kashmir's history. What the Indian government needs to understand is that its approach towards the issue is basically erroneous. Economic blockade cannot smother the Kashmiris' spirit of freedom from the Indian yoke.