Pakistan Day: Separatist leaders detained and put under house arrest in Kashmir

Srinagar: Hurriyat Conference chairmen Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Moulvi Omar Farooq remained under house arrest while restrictions continued on about half-a-dozen other separatist leaders to prevent them from attending Pakistan Day in Delhi today.

Meanwhile, National Front, a constituent of hardline Hurriyat, chairman Nayeem Ahmad Khan, who was yesterday arrested at Srinagar International Airport when he was leaving for New Delhi to attend the day in Pakistan Embassy, remained lodged in Raj Bagh police station.

“All our leaders, who were detained or place under house arrest yesterday, have not been released,” a spokesman for the hardline HC Aiyaz Akbar told UNI.

He said large number of security forces and police personnel remained deployed outside the Hyderpora residence of amalgam chairman Geelani, who has been put under house arrest since May last year.

Akbar alleged that Geelani could not offer Eid or Friday prayers in a mosque due to restrictions.

“Besides me, about a dozen other senior leaders remained under detention in different police station in the valley or under house arrest since yesterday,” said Akbar.

“We had booked air tickets to travel to New Delhi yesterday to attend the Pak Day today, but we were informed that we cannot travel. We were put under house arrest or detained in police stations,” he said.

He said General Secretary Shabir Ahmad Shah, Mohammad Ashraf Sehrayee, Peer Saifullah, Altaf Ahmad Shah, Raja Mehrajuddin and Mohammad Ashraf Laya remained under house arrest while Umar Adil Dar detained in police station.

Meanwhile, moderate Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz also remained under house arrest, media advisor to HC Advocate Shahidul Islam told UNI. He said the Mirwaiz and several other senior leaders of the amalgam, including himself, were scheduled to travel to Delhi by air today. But security forces and state police personnel remained deployed outside the Nigeen house of the Mirwaiz, who remained under house arrest for the past about one week. “I have also been put under house arrest this morning to prevent me for leaving for New Delhi,” said Islam.

UNI