Srinagar, July 8 - Violent protests brought normal life to a near complete halt in this Jammu and Kashmir summer capital Wednesday after the body of a youth who was reported missing for the past five days was found in an old city area.

The body of Asrar Ahmed Dar, 20, a student who was reported missing from uptown Maisuma area since Saturday, was found in Rainawari.

Mystery shrouded the cause of his death even as locals blamed police and other security agencies of having picked him up and later killed him.

As the news of the youth's death spread, people took to streets at many places in the uptown and downtown areas of Srinagar and pelted stones to force a shutdown. They damaged vehicles in a parking lot in the city centre.

Protesters set afire two security vehicles, smashed shop-fronts and blocked traffic at many key junctions bringing life to a near complete halt in the city.

Tension gripped the entire city as police and central paramilitary forces used tear gas and batons to quell the protesters.