Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, June 5: Police today foiled a proposed meeting of three top separatist leaders to discuss raids by National Investigative Agency (NIA) during past two days in Kashmir as part of alleged hawala funding to them.
The chairmen of moderate Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Yasin Malik and hardline Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani were scheduled to meet at Hyderpora – the residence-cum-office of Geelani – today at 11 am and then address a press conference.
However, police did not allow the meeting to take place and placed Mirwaiz and Geelani under house detention while it detained Malik, who was lodged in Maisuma police station after being detained from his residence today morning. The police also sealed off the lane leading to the house of Geelani at Hyderpora by erecting concertina wire. ‘
A spokesman of the Hurriyat said that police also placed Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai, Peer Saifullah, Ayaz Akbar, Altaf Ahmad Shah, Raja Meraj-u-Din Kalwal, Mohamad Ashraf Laya and Omer Adil Dar under house arrest. “These curbs and restrictions are unjustified and illogical…By choking space and strangulating genuine voices, the State authorities are following their fascist dogma, thus creating anarchy in State,” he said.
The meeting was supposed to be held to discuss the raids by NIA on the residences of second-line separatist leaders and businessmen in Srinagar and other cities on June 3 and June 4 following three separatist leaders admitted to receiving funds from Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Toiba to fuel unrest in Valley in a sting operation conducted by a New Delhi-based television channel. After the meeting, Geelani, Mirwaiz and Malik were also scheduled to brief media.
Responding to today’s foiling of separatist meeting, Director General of Police (DGP) Dr Shesh Paul Vaid said anybody trying to derail investigation into hawala funding by NIA would be dealt effectively. “Law must take its course and investigation must conclude. Anybody trying to derail that has to be effectively dealt with,” he told reporters here.
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