The day the valley shut down to press for the return of Afzal Guru's body, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said chief minister Omar Abdullah's demand for return of the bodies of Guru and Maqbool Bhat was a ploy.

"Why is the CM claiming the body of Bhat now, after 40 years, and tagging it with another, which is current and which is possible?" said PDP chief spokesman Naeem Akhtar on Friday.

"Omar's demand is aimed at scuttling the main issue, which is the return of Guru's body. The CM is trying to subvert and lessen the pressure on the government of India."

Both Abdullah and PDP patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed have written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding the return of Guru's body.

Abdullah, however, raised the bar by demanding the return of Bhat's remains as well. Bhat was the founder of pro-independence JKLF and was hanged in Tihar in 1984.

On Friday, in response to the separatists' protest calendar, shops, banks, petrol pumps and other businesses were closed and public transport remained off the roads.