Geelani calls for protests after police foil seminar on Pak refugees
While terming the recommendation of Parliamentary Committee with regarding settlement of West Pakistan refugees and putting restrictions over the seminar called on this sensitive issue as “worst example of the state terrorism,” Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman Syed Ali Geelani Thursday called for peaceful protest demonstration after the Friday prayers on January 30.
In a statement he expressed surprise over the attitude of the state administration and police regarding to this matter and said, “These recommendations are challenge to the state constitution and it seems that it is not only the plan of the BJP government but the state administration and the police overwhelmingly supporting them in this matter.”
For barring today’s seminar, a heavy police deployment was made at the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat head office Hyderpora and the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat general secretary Mohammad Ashruf Sehrai, Hurriyat spokesman Ayaz Akbar and besides Raja Mehraj-ud-din, Hurriyat Conference (JK) chief Shabir Ahmad Shah (who was scheduled to speak in the seminar) were put under house detention.
“Police didn’t allow anybody towards the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat office and the people who came to attend the seminar were forced to return.”
Geelani who is presently in Delhi for health checkups was scheduled to address the seminar over the telephone and the participation of the people was expected in the seminar. In a telephonic statement from New Delhi, Geelani termed the restrictions “as hooliganism of the state police and said that this was an academic type of conference in which the speakers were to discuss the recommendations regarding the settlement of the West Pakistan refugees and giving them the voting rights in the state assembly and they were to present their viewpoint over the political, social and legal aspects of this issue.”
“This seminar was to be held within the four walls of the conference hall and it would not have affected the traffic movement on the roads and nor would have it affected the normal life of the people. Although the role of the police department is not more than the maintaining of law and order in the region but the Jammu & Kashmir police is exceeding their authorities and always interfere in the political matters of the state. The recommendation of Indian parliamentary committee with regarding to the West Pakistan refugees is a grave and serious issue against which every conscious Kashmiri has reservations. These recommendations are a type of challenge to the status of the state constitution and it can’t be taken lightly,” he said.
“The communal forces of India are from a very long time waiting to change the demography and to eliminate the Muslim identity of the state and today they want to accomplish this task with the help of Modi government. The implementation of the recommendations of the JPC will be an act of providing legal justification for the illegal and forced occupation of India over Kashmir and it is extremely unacceptable to us,” Geelani added.
While suggesting the police to be cautious, he said, “The recommendations are harmful and damaging for every Kashmiri. Hurriyat Conference will continue its efforts to gather the public consensus over this issue and the people from every walk of life will be contacted in this regard. A handbill will also be prepared in this regard which will elaborate each aspect of this issue.”
Meanwhile the general secretary of Hurriyat Conference Ghulam Nabi Sumji today held an emergency meeting in Srinagar in which the police action of barring of the today’s seminar and house arrest of Mohammad Ashruf Sehrai, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Ayaz Akbar and Raja Mehraj-ud-din was condemned in strong words and it was also said in the meeting that “the police is doing a blunder by restricting the peaceful political activities and the result of this policy will not be favorable in any way.”
