SRINAGAR, India -- Twelve people were arrested Saturday as Indian police forcibly broke up a religious procession in Kashmir to mark the birth of the Prophet Mohammed, witnesses said.

Dozens of activists of the Islamic Students League (ISL) marched through Srinagar, the state's summer capital, reciting verses from the Qoran and shouting pro-Islamic slogans.

They had planned to walk to Srinagar's lakeside Hazratbal Mosque, which houses a hair which Muslims believe comes from the Prophet's beard, but were prevented from doing so by police as there is a ban

Witnesses said when the marchers insisted on continuing they were baton-charged by the police.

A dozen of them were pulled into waiting vehicles and taken to a nearby police station.

ISL officials said several of their members were injured in the police action.

Much of Kashmir was closed down last week because of a three-day strike between Wednesday and Friday to protest against a visit by Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to the Muslim-dominated va

Life returned to normal Saturday with shops and businesses opening.

"It is great the strike is over as I have to purchase many things for my daughter's marriage due next week," said shopper Mohammed Shafi.

Shopkeepers were equally happy with a return to normality on the streets of Srinagar.

"It is better to be in business than to stay at home," said Mohammed Yusuf, a shopkeeper in Srinagar's Poloview area.

More than 35,000 people have been killed in Kashmir since 1989 when Muslim militants launched an armed rebellion against Indian rule.