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Tariq Bhat
Tariq Bhat

JAMMU & KASHMIR

Separatists leader's meet at Syed Geelani's house foiled

syed-ali-shah-geelani The venue of the meeting was Geelani’s residence at Hydepora in Srinagar

The government on Monday foiled the meeting of Joint Resistance Forum, comprising separatist leaders Yasin Malik, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani that was called to discuss the NIA raids on the residences and businesses of separatists on charges of supplying money for creating unrest in Kashmir. 

Mirwaiz was detained in his house at Nigeen and Malik was taken to the police station at Maisuama. The venue of the meeting was Geelani’s residence at Hydepora in Srinagar. The route leading to the residence of Geelani was barricaded with rolls of concertina wire this morning with additional reinforcements from police. 

The three leaders were to meet and discuss the NIA raids and then address a press conference. A spokesman for Mirwaiz said the police prevented him from attending the meeting of the Joint Resistance Forum. He said that the "anti-Kashmiri state resorted to its usual tactic of curbing the leadership through force, once again showing that Kashmir is ruled by the forces’ might.” 

The NIA raids rattled the separatists on Saturday as the raids began after the NIA summoned to Delhi three second rung separatists Farooq Ahmed Dar alias Bitta Karate, Nayeem Khan, Javid Ahmed Khan Ghazi. The three were first questioned in Kashmir by an NIA team. They were caught on tape in a sting operation admitting that separatists take money from Pakistan to foment unrest in Kashmir by paying for stone pelting and burning schools.  

So far the NIA have raided several locations in Kashmir, Jammu, Delhi and Haryana. According to NIA spokesperson Alok Mittal, the agency has raided seven more locations in Jammu and Kashmir and Gurgaon on Sunday. "In continuation of yesterday’s searches at multiple locations in Kashmir, Delhi, and Haryana, the NIA took up fresh searches today at seven more locations belonging to secessionist and separatist elements and traders suspected of Hawala activities and terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir. Searches were conducted in Srinagar, Jammu, and Gurgaon," he said.

He said that during the searches Pakistani currency (a few thousands) and currencies belonging to the UAE and Saudi Arabia were seized, apart from the incriminating material, including correspondence with jailed "trouble makers". The NIA also raided the house of businessman Zahoor Watali at Gurgaon.

It also raided the residence of Hurriyat Conference (Geelani faction) spokesperson Ayaz Akbar at Maloora and the Srinagar office of Geelani. The house of a trader, Farooq Ahmad Boga, in Parimpora area of Srinagar was also raided. Farooq has a shop at the Parimpora fruit mandi.

On Saturday, the agency had raided the houses of Khan, Dar, Altaf Shah alias Altaf Fantosh, Geelani’s son-in-law, Raja Mairaj, Zafar Akbar, Watali, Shahid ul Islam, Noor Kalwal, Raja Zahoor Khan, Muhammad Sultan Tangnuu, Nazir Ahmad Mir alias Nazir Gas, Farooq Ahmad Wani, Muhammad Sultan Chandu, Dr Bashir Ahmad Bhat Tariq Ahmad Khan, ex-President of the LoC Traders Association and Kamal in Jammu.

The separatists have termed the raids by the NIA as witch hunt and an attempt by the government at Centre and the state to defame the freedom movement. In a statement they said: such dirty ploys will neither demoralise the people from their faith in their political struggle and leadership nor will it help shift focus from the actual issue on the ground and the unprecedented atrocities committed against the Kashmiri people.

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