News Analysis India

Tag: Hurriyat Conference

  • Angered over innocent killings, people damage Hurriyat office in Kashmir

    By IANS

    SRINAGAR: Angered by recent innocent killings in Kashmir, some social activists on Monday damaged the office of the separatist Hurriyat Conference in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar city.

    A group of social activists gathered outside the Rajbagh locality office of the separatist Hurriyat Conference.

    Visibly angered over the recent killings, the group of activists told reporters that the Hurriyat leaders had deceived the people for the past 30 years and they were responsible for killing innocents in Kashmir.

    The group of activists brought down the office board of the Hurriyat conference with bare hands.

    The Hurriyat Conference is a conglomerate of separatist parties that stand for the secession of Kashmir from India.

    Between themselves, the Hurriyat leaders are divided over whether they seek an independent state or merger with Pakistan.

    This difference finally resulted in the split of the Hurriyat conference into the one headed by late Syed Ali Geelani and the other by Miwaiz Umar Farooq.

    READ HERE | Emotional scenes, chants against Pakistan at cremation of slain Kashmiri pandit in Jammu

    SRINAGAR: Angered by recent innocent killings in Kashmir, some social activists on Monday damaged the office of the separatist Hurriyat Conference in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar city.

    A group of social activists gathered outside the Rajbagh locality office of the separatist Hurriyat Conference.

    Visibly angered over the recent killings, the group of activists told reporters that the Hurriyat leaders had deceived the people for the past 30 years and they were responsible for killing innocents in Kashmir.

    The group of activists brought down the office board of the Hurriyat conference with bare hands.

    The Hurriyat Conference is a conglomerate of separatist parties that stand for the secession of Kashmir from India.

    Between themselves, the Hurriyat leaders are divided over whether they seek an independent state or merger with Pakistan.

    This difference finally resulted in the split of the Hurriyat conference into the one headed by late Syed Ali Geelani and the other by Miwaiz Umar Farooq.

    READ HERE | Emotional scenes, chants against Pakistan at cremation of slain Kashmiri pandit in Jammu

  • Civilian deaths at Hyderpora encounter: Hurriyat’s strike disrupts normal life in Kashmir

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: Normal life was affected in the Kashmir valley on Friday due to a strike called by the Hurriyat Conference to express solidarity with the families of the civilians killed in the Hyderpora encounter earlier this week, officials said.

    Most of the shops, fuel stations and other business establishments in Srinagar were shut, the officials said.

    Public transport was largely off the roads, but private cars and auto-rickshaws were seen plying in some areas of the city, they said.

    The officials said similar reports of the strike being observed were received from other areas of the valley.

    The effect of the strike was accentuated by the public holiday on account of Gurupurab, they added.

    The Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq had given the strike call.

    “Hurriyat Conference regrets that as most peoples’ leadership and political activists are either in jails or under house detention, to protest such inhumanity, and in solidarity with the devastated families of the slain civilians and their demand that the dead bodies of their loved ones be returned to them for burial, people should observe a shut down on Friday 19th November on their own,” the Hurriyat said in a statement here.

    The bodies of the two civilians, Altaf Bhat and Mudasir Gul, killed during Monday’s encounter in Hyderpora area of the city were exhumed at Handwara late on Thursday and were handed over to the families.

    The bodies were buried here during the night after their last rites were performed by the families.

  • J&K government orders magisterial probe into Hyderpora encounter, exhumes bodies

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  The J&K administration on Thursday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the Hyderpora encounter in which four persons were killed and also exhumed from Handwara graveyard bodies of two Srinagar residents killed in the controversial counter-insurgency operation.

    Meanwhile, the separatist Hurriyat Conference has called for a shutdown on Friday to protest the “civilian killings”.

    An official spokesman said a magisterial inquiry by an officer of Additional District Magistrate (ADM) rank has been ordered.

    Additional District Magistrate, Srinagar, Khurshid Ahmad Shah has been nominated as inquiry officer. The ADM has been asked to submit the report within 15 days. 

    The ADM has issued a notice asking people who have any knowledge and are willing to record statements to visit his office within 10 days to record their statements.

    Hours after Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha ordered a magisterial probe into the killings, Deputy Commissioner of Srinagar Muhammad Aijaz Asad appointed additional district magistrate Khurshid Ahmad Shah as inquiry officer.

    Shah immediately issued a public notice, urging people who wish to record their statement in connection with Monday’s encounter and approach his office within 10 days on all working days.

    The magisterial probe was ordered amid protests by families of three of the four persons killed in the encounter claiming their relatives were innocent.

    Authorities on Thursday exhumed bodies of Mohammad Altaf Bhat and Mudasir Gul, for handing them over to their families, officials said.

    The bodies were exhumed after sundown and are likely to be handed over to their families later in the night, they said.

    This will be for the first time that the body of a person buried under police watch is returned to his kin since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March last year.

    The bodies, accompanied by a police team, are being moved to Srinagar from Handwara where they were initially buried, the officials said.

    Police on Tuesday said four persons, including a foreign militant Hyder Bhai, his associate Aamir Magray, Over Ground Worker (OGW) Gul (businessman) and Ahmed, were killed in an encounter in Hyderpora on Monday night.

    However, families of Aamir, Dr Mudasir and Altaf contested the claim and alleged they were killed in a staged encounter. Police on Tuesday quietly buried the bodies at Handwara, about 100 km from Srinagar.

    The relatives of Bhat and Gul were camping at Press Colony since Wednesday morning, to press for return of the bodies which were buried in the dead of night of Monday at Handwara in North Kashmir.

    The day began with viral videos doing rounds that showed police removing families of two civilians from the protest site at Residency Road around midnight.

    The families were taken for a meeting with senior officials at police control room Kashmir in which they reiterated their demand for return of the bodies.

    Bhat’s family welcomed the probe ordered by the administration but appealed to the Lt Governor to return his body so that his kids can see him for one last time.

    Omar, who is the vice president of the National Conference, moved near the residence of chief justice of Jammu and Kashmir high court and staged a non-violent sit-in along with party leaders to demand for the return of bodies of the civilians killed in the Hyderpora encounter.

    “We are sitting here peacefully. If we wanted we would have blocked roads, bridges, but no. There has been no sloganeering, no law and order disturbance and no road has been blocked.”

    “We are not raising voice against the government, we just demand that bodies be returned,” Omar told reporters at the Municipal Park here.

    He said despite the fact that the police admitted that the civilian was killed in crossfire, his body was not given to the family, but buried in Handwara.

    In a related development, People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) met at the residence of its president Farooq Abdullah to discuss the situation arising out of the encounter.

    After the meeting, Mohammad Tarigami, who is the spokesman of the PAGD, said they will be exploring all avenues to end the culture of impunity and bloodshed.

    “We will be writing to the President of India this evening, seeking a credible probe into the Hyderpora incident. In our view, only a judicial probe can be credible and fair.”

    The veteran CPI(M) leader said the PAGD leaders, except PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, met at the residence of Abdullah to discuss the “unfortunate situation” arising out of the “killing of three innocent civilians” at Hyderpora on Monday.

    He claimed that Mehbooba was placed under house arrest by the authorities.

    He also said the magisterial probe ordered by the Jammu and Kashmir government cannot be fair as it was against the principles of justice that the “accused administration investigated the charges against itself”.

    “The PAGD leaders also appeal to the people and leadership of the country to rise in defence of Democratic rights of citizens of India from Jammu and Kashmir as well.

    There is a need to share this pain of Kashmir before it is too late, ” he said.

    The PAGD spokesman refused to answer any questions other than related to the meeting of amalgam saying “we are not here to do politics over the bodies of innocent civilians.”

    The Peoples Conference and High Court Bar Association also held a protest against the killings.

    Meanwhile, the Hurriyat Conference has called for a general strike on Friday to press for the demand for returning the bodies of the slain men to their families.

    (With PTI Inputs)

  • Hurriyat Conference calls for strike in support of kin of civilians killed in Hyderpora encounter

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: The Hurriyat Conference on Thursday called for a shutdown on November 19 in support of the families of the two civilians killed in the Hyderpora encounter demanding justice for the victims and return of their bodies.

    A controversy has erupted over Monday’s encounter in Hyderpora following conflicting claims about the two deceased as their family members contested the police’s charge that they were “terror associates”.

    The Hurriyat Conference, in a statement, said the Hyderpora encounter has stunned the people of Kashmir.

    Since most leaders and political activists are “either in jails or under house detention, to protest such inhumanity (Hyderpora encounter) and in solidarity with the devastated families of the slain civilians and their demand that the bodies of their loved ones be returned to them for burial, people should observe a shut down on Friday on their own”, it said.

    According to the police, Mohammad Amir of Famrote village in Ramban was a militant and was killed along with his Pakistani accomplice in the Monday evening encounter in Hyderpora, where an illegal call centre and a terror hideout were allegedly being run.

    Two civilians — Altaf Bhat and Mudassir Gul — were also killed in the firing, triggering an angry reaction from their family who claimed they were innocent and not linked to militancy.

    The family members of two civilians staged a sit-in at the Press Enclave in Srinagar on Wednesday and held a candlelight vigil after the daylong protest.

    They were forcibly removed from the site by police around midnight and a few of them were detained, officials said on Thursday.

    On Thursday, the Jammu and Kashmir administration ordered a magisterial probe into the Hyderpora encounter.

    Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said in a tweet, “A magisterial inquiry by an officer of ADM rank has been ordered in Hyderpora encounter. The government will take suitable action as soon as the report is submitted in a time-bound manner. J-K admin reiterates its commitment of protecting lives of innocent civilians and it will ensure there is no injustice.” 

  • Mirwaiz-led Hurriyat condemns ‘forcible closure’ of Jamia Masjid in Srinagar

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: The Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Saturday condemned the “forcible closure” of the historic Jamia Masjid here by authorities, disallowing thousands of people to offer congregational Friday prayers.

    The managing body of Jamia Masjid had on Friday claimed that authorities did not allow congregational prayers there by deploying security personnel in large numbers.

    It also said that that police personnel “forced” employees to close all gates of the mosque and no ‘namazis’ (devotees) were allowed inside.

    “Hurriyat Conference strongly condemns the forcible closure of Jamia Masjid, Srinagar by the state authorities for congregational Friday prayers,” a statement said.

    It said the earlier pretext of closing the mosque to prevent the spread of COVID-19 stands totally exposed.

    “The grief and deep hurt this reprehensible act causes people, who for decades have been offering prayers in this central mosque, cannot be expressed in words.

    “The environment created in J&K by the rulers is so suffocating and intimidating that no one dares (to) raise their voice to ask why even the basic right to offer prayers is denied,” the Hurriyat said.

    It alleged that all efforts are being made to silence the people of Jammu and Kashmir into submission.

    “The recent continuing crackdown in every nook and corner of the valley has seen arrests of more than a thousand people so far, picked up by the authorities, and then illegally detained on criminal charges and draconian laws,” it said.

  • Hurriyat Conference condemns killing of pharmacy owner, two others in Jammu and Kashmir

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: The Hurriyat Conference, led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, on Wednesday expressed grief over the killing of Kashmiri Pandit businessman M L Bindroo and two others by militants.

    The separatist amalgam appealed to the international community to intervene in putting an end to the daily violence and tragic loss of life in Kashmir by “pushing for the resolution of the lingering Kashmir conflict, which is the root cause of all this suffering”.

    Slain Kashmiri Pandit businessman Makhan Lal Bindroo’s daughter, Dr Shradda Bindroo says her father was a Kashmiri Pandit and will never die. “You can just kill the body and Makhan Lal Bindroo will be alive in the spirit”.@NewIndianXpress@khogensingh1https://t.co/0wcToZhY7Y
    — Fayaz Wani (@iamfayazwani) October 6, 2021
    “Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz, who continues to be under illegal house arrest, expressed shock and condemned the killing of Bindroo, a leading pharmacist of the valley who had been dedicatedly serving the people of the valley for the last many decades, and two others yesterday evening,” a statement said.

    It strongly condemned all the killings, which are acts of pure violence against fellow humans and humanity.

    “Hurriyat Conference extends its heartfelt condolences and sympathies with the bereaved family of Bindroo and others who have been pushed to perpetual grief at the loss of their dear one,” the statement added.

    Bindroo (68), the owner of Bindroo Medicare, was shot at by the assailants from point-blank range while he was at his pharmacy, a police official said, adding he was rushed to a hospital where he was declared dead.

    Barely a few minutes after the killing of Bindroo, militants gunned down a roadside vendor identified as Virendra Paswan, a resident of Bhagalpur in Bihar, who used to earn his livelihood by selling ‘golgappa’ and ‘bhelpuri’.

    Almost simultaneously, militants shot dead Mohammad Shafi Lone at Naidkhai in Bandipora district of north Kashmir, officials said.

  • Hope formation of new Afghan govt will end four decades of conflict: Hurriyat Conference

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: The Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Thursday expressed hope that the formation of the new government in Afghanistan will put an end to four decades of conflict and uncertainty in the country.

    The Taliban swept across Afghanistan last month, seizing control of almost all key towns and cities in the backdrop of withdrawal of the US forces that began on May 1.

    It took over Kabul on August 15 and on Tuesday, unveiled a hardline interim government led by Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund.

    ​ALSO READ | Uncertainty has spread everywhere; current developments in Afghan one such example: Rajnath

    Hoping that the new dispensation in the worn-torn country is inclusive and broad based, the Hurriyat said it must bear in mind that Islam as a religion is unambiguous in advocating human equality and rights, economic fairness and religious tolerance as foundational values.

    “After the unfolding of confusing and chaotic events in Afghanistan during the past month, the Hurriyat hopes that the formation of the new government will put an end to four decades of ceaseless conflict and uncertainty,” the amalgam said in a statement here.

    The Hurriyat said the amalgam understands that no two conflict regions are the same and the differences between Afghanistan and Kashmir are well-known.

    ALSO READ | Delhi HC refuses to allow man to go to Afghanistan, says bleak chance of returning

    However, “we in Kashmir can surely empathise with the common people of the country who also have been living in a state of acute uncertainty for 40 years”, it said.

    “Long term uncertainty takes its toll and we hope that people of Afghanistan will come out of it soon.

    We also hope that as the country begins the process of building its own future and realising its aspirations, all regional and international member countries will extend their support to it,” the statement said.

    The Hurriyat wishes the citizens of Afghanistan peace and progress in their land and stability for the region, the separatist amalgam said.

  • Hardline separatist leader Masrat Alam appointed Hurriyat chairman

    By Express News Service

    SRINAGAR: The Hurriyat Conference has appointed jailed hardline separatist leader Masrat Alam Bhat as the new chairman of the separatist conglomerate after the death of senior separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani.

    In a statement, Hurriyat said that Alam has been appointed as the new chairman of the Hurriyat Conference.

    Alam, 50, who spearheaded 2010 summer unrest in Kashmir during which over 120 youth were killed, is presently lodged in Delhi’s Tihar jail.

    He played a key role in the split of the united Hurriyat Conference and forming of the hardline Hurriyat faction led by Geelani. Alam was General Secretary of the Hurriyat faction led by Geelani.

    Geelani, who was under house detention since 2010, died at his Hyderpora residence on Wednesday last. His body was quietly buried by authorities before sunrise on Thursday. His family members alleged that his body was forcibly taken and buried by police while police denied the charge and also released videos of his ablution and burial.

    The Hurriyat statement said after Geelani’s death, a consultative exercise was conducted with members of the executive council of the separatist conglomerate using different mediums to avoid arrests.

    “Shabir Ahmad Shah and Ghulam Ahmed Gulzar have been appointed as Vice chairmen. Molvi Bashir Ahmed Irfani will continue as General Secretary,” read the statement.

    On May 2, 2016, Geelani had stated Hurriyat headed by him will elect the next-in-line after his death.

    “Hurriyat knows what to do after his death. They will elect my successor through a consultation process,” he had said.

    Bhat, who had studied in Srinagar’s leading Christian missionary Tyndale Biscoe hails from Srinagar, is presently lodged at Delhi’s Tihar jail.

    He has so far been booked 37 times under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA).

    He was for the first time arrested at the age of 19 in 1990.

    Alam has been in detention since 2015 and was shifted to Tihar jail after his arrest by NIA in a militancy funding case.

    In 2010, when Kashmir witnessed summer unrest, the government placed a Rs 10 lakh bounty on his head and declared him a “most wanted” separatist leader. He was later arrested on October 18, 2010.

    Like Geelani, Alam is a hardline leader and favours J&K’s merger with Pakistan.

  • Geelani given quiet burial by police, before sunrise amid high security 

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  The body Hardline separatist and former Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who died on Wednesday night, was given a quiet burial before the sunrise on Thursday amid high security. 

    His family alleged that the police forcibly took his body and quietly buried it at a graveyard near his residence at 4.45 am, sources said.

    Only a handful of people were allowed to attend his funeral prayers.

    Geelani’s son Naeem Geelani told this newspaper that nobody from his family was allowed to attend the burial.

    “The police stormed into our house around 3 am, misbehaved with the people present inside, including women and forcibly took away Geelani’s body. The women were dragged out of the room and threatened they will be fired at,” he alleged.

    Naeem said it was the police who gave Geelani his last bath. They also dug his grave and buried him after giving a funeral prayer. “All this was done in our absence and none from family attended his burial or funeral prayers”.

    He said IG and SSP Budgam visited their home and they told them that Geelani’s last wish was that his body is buried in the martyrs graveyard at Eidgah.

    “They said it is not possible. We told them to give us permission to bury the body quietly in martyrs graveyard Eidgah. However, they did not agree and said they have orders to get the body buried before dawn,” Naeem said.

    The police denied the allegations and said Geelani’s family members were present at the funeral site.

    Meanwhile, with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan declaring a day of official mourning on the demise of Geelani, India on Thursday said it was the Pakistani PM’s statement and it had no comments to offer.

    Geelani, 91, died at his home in Srinagar on Wednesday night after a prolonged illness.

    The pro-Pakistan separatist leader, who spearheaded separatist politics for over three decades in Jammu and Kashmir, was buried at a mosque near his residence.

    Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was “deeply saddened” to learn about Geelani’s death.

    “The Pakistan flag will fly at half-mast and we will observe a day of official mourning,” Khan said.

    Asked about Khan’s statement at an online media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “I don’t have an immediate comment on this. It is his statement. They had given him ‘Nishan-e-Pakistan’, their wish, what can I say.”

    Asked about reports of vandalising of temple and breaking of idols in Pakistan, Bagchi said India has issued many statements on attacks on minorities in Pakistan and has raised such issues with them in the past.

    On the resumption of air bubble with Bangladesh, the MEA spokesperson said talks are underway and proposals are being discussed.

    To a separate question on Vishal Jood, who is lodged in an Australian prison reportedly over his alleged hand in a series of hate attacks on suspected pro-Khalistan Sikhs in Sydney this year,

    Bagchi said a judgment has been passed in the case on Thursday and the ministry is ascertaining its details.

    Tight cover

    Restrictions were imposed in Srinagar and other parts of the Valley to foil attempts from Geelani’s supporters to reach his residence.

    Security forces had placed concertina wires and armoured vehicles on the roads. 

    (With PTI Inputs)

  • Syed Ali Shah Geelani: Lone voice of opposition to Musharraf’s four-point formula to resolve Kashmir issue

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:   Senioror Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, known for his hardline approach, breathed his last at his residence in Hyderpora, Srinagar on Wednesday evening.

    He was 92 years old. According to his family, his health condition worsened on Wednesday afternoon and he passed away at 10.30 pm. Geelani, who was under house detention since 2010, had been suffering from various ailments for a very long time.

    He was known for his hardline ideology and advocated J&K’s accession to Pakistan. He was heading a Hurriyat faction since 2003.

    The Hurriyat Conference, an umbrella of different separatist groups, was formed in 1993. However, owing to differences, Geelani in 2003 split the Hurriyat Conference into two.

    He headed one of the factions, which was known for its hardline stance while Mirwaiz Umar Farooq headed another faction (a more moderate faction). G eelani was a member of Jamaat-e-Islami Kashmir but later quit Jamaat to found his own party—Tehreek-e-Hurriyat.

    He spearheaded the 2008 Amarnath land row agitation, 2010 and 2016 uprisings in the Valley. He was opposed to bilateral talks with India and favoured tripartite talks involving Pakistan, Kashmiri leaders and India.

    He was the only Kashmiri leader who opposed former Pakistan military ruler General Parvez Musharraf’s four-point Kashmir formula.

    When an all-party delegation visited his Hyderpora residence during the 2016 agitation, he refused to meet them. G eelani, who was born on September 29, 1929 in Sopore, was an MLA from Sopore constituency of Jammu and Kashmir in 1972, 1977 and 1987.

    However, after the eruption of militancy, he joined the separatist politics and remained a popular leader among the masses, including the youth.

    In November 2010, the police invoked sedition charges against Geelani, Arundhati Roy, activist Varavara Rao and three others in an FIR in connection with a speech calling for freedom for Kashmir.

    The authorities have sounded high alert across the Valley in light of his death. Security forces have been beefed up to prevent acts of violence. Internet services were suspended until further notice.

    The mainstream leaders including former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and Peoples Conference chairman Sajjad Gani Lone condoled his death.

    “Saddened by the news of Geelani sahab’s passing away. We may not have agreed on most things but I respect him for his steadfastness & standing by his beliefs. May Allah Ta’aala grant him jannat & condolences to his family & well wishers,” tweeted PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti.