Geelani calls for social boycott to pro-India leaders

Hurriyat Chairman conquers NC’s fortress, dares Farooq to address a gathering at Lalchowk

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Sep 3: Separatist hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani today conquered National Conference’s historic bastion of Pathar Masjid as he addressed a religious congregation and called for “total social boycott” to all mainstream political leaders, including Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s party. He asked Dr Farooq Abdullah to stop delivering rhetorical speeches in the Indian Parliament and dared him to address a gathering at Lalchowk.

Losing out its traditional politico-religious bastions to the separatists, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s National Conference (NC) was conspicuously missing at almost all the major Jumatul Vida congregations on occasion of the holy month’s last Friday today. Omar Abdullah, and few of his party colleagues had to be content with performing their afternoon prayers at Sayeed Sahib shrine, at a stone’s throw from the Chief Minister’s Gupkar Road residence.

The yesteryears’ star attraction at Hazratbal, Omar Abdullah, however, made it a point to facilitate passage of devout Muslims in droves to all of the Valley’s shrines and mosques. While Geelani had declared Friday “open for usual business”, Chief Minister made the authorities to completely withdraw curfew from all sensitive localities. Credible reports said that more than 50,000 Muslims participated in the Friday prayers at Hazratbal. Though none of the NC’s prominent leaders was visible at Hazratbal, Hurriyat and other separatist groups too did not succeed in their marking their presence at the revered shrine and mosque.

Miles away, Geelani surfaced dramatically at Pathar Masjid in the capital city interior to participate in the Jumatul Vida prayers and deliver an address on the current political upheaval. Pathar Masjid is situated beside Mujahid Manzil that, for decades, served as Sheikh Abdullah’s seat of power and NC’s headquarters. Mujahid Manzil has been under the control of paramilitary forces ever since militancy erupted in the Valley in 1989-90.

Once working as an office clerk under late Maulana Masoodi’s patronage at Mujahid Manzil, Geelani today used the same place to denigrate Sheikh Abdullah as a ‘traitor’ and criminal of the Kashmiri nation. As soon as he spotted enthusiastic crowds shouting slogans in his favour, Geelani cautioned them against “worship of individuals”. He asserted that this worship of the Kashmiris in Sheikh Abdullah’s praise had “destroyed our Kashmir”. “Sheikh Abdullah took the people of Kashmir far granted and brought the state under the control and occupation of the Indian Army, that has been mercilessly killing the Kashmir since 1947”, Geelani said.

A Jamaat-e-Islami ideologue for decades, Geelani asserted that all of the pro-India leaders and politicians had been misleading the Kashmiris with their seemingly pro-Azadi posturing. “If anybody of them is sincere”, he said, “he should immediately resign, become penitent and join our freedom struggle”. Turning tough, Geelani called upon the Kashmiris to observe “total social boycott” to all the pro-Indian politicians and stay away from them all political, religious and social gatherings”. His call was reminiscent of Sheikh Abdullah’s call of “social boycott” to all workers and leaders of the Congress party in early 1970s when the plebiscite patriarch spearheaded a separatist movement before assuming power in 1975 and Geelani was among five Jamaat leaders who were declared as MLAs in the elections fraudulently conducted by the Congress.

Taking strong exception to Dr Abdullah’s speech in the Rajya Sabha, in which the NC patriarch declared J&K as an integral part of India, Geelani challenged him to make a similar speech at Lalchowk. He claimed that NC and other pro-Indian outfits had been uprooted in Kashmir. He claimed that the “freedom struggle” had successfully passed on to a new generation. He asked the youth to maintain high degree of discipline and not to use violent methods in carrying out programmes under his “Quit Jammu & Kashmir Movement”. “India is completely frustrated and has been conspiring to label this peaceful movement as directionless anarchy. Be vigilant and don’t give India any chance to give us a bad name”, he asked the youth.

At another historic fortress of the ruling NC---Chrar-e-Sharief--- everybody, including the influential Minister of Finance Abdul Rahim Rather, who has been continuously representing the constituency since 1977, was absent. A huge gathering of devout Muslims participated in the Friday prayers at the mausoleum of 14th century Rishi saint, Sheikh Nooruddin Noorani. While the mainstream leaders were absent, JKLF Chairman, Yasin Malik, surfaced at the congregation. He also delivered a speech on Azadi.

The largest gathering of Jumatul Vida was as usual at Jamia Masjid where Chairman of the so-called moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference, participated in the prayers. In his ceremonial sermon, Mirwaiz claimed that current turbulence had “shaken India” which, according to him, was now groping in the dark in search of stability. He invited Malik and Geelani to the Eid congregation at Eidgah next Friday and asserted that a unified separatist leadership alone could force New Delhi to shun its rigidity.

END