Hurriyat leader Geelani arrested in Srinagar

SRINAGAR - Syed Ali Shah Geelani, the leader of the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference in Kashmir, has been arrested from his residence in Srinagar city on Wednesday after he threatened to intensify the agitation in the Valley on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will meet Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh this evening and reportedly discuss ways to end the current impasse in Kashmir valley.

Earlier on September 1, Geelani set down five conditions before New Delhi to facilitate a review the hardline Hurriyat Conference’s ongoing agitation programme.

“India must agree Jammu and Kashmir is an international dispute. It must begin the process of demilitarisation. The prime minister must commit publicly and ensure no killings and arrests take place henceforth,” said Geelani.

“The process of punishing perpetrators of state violence should begin with conviction of troops responsible for the 65 killings. This should be followed by conviction of war criminals,” he added.

“If India and the Army are actually serious about solving the problem of Kashmir, so it is necessary that such violence should be stopped, and the Army should make government ready (agree) to demilitarise the area, so that there should be peace in the region,” he said.

He further stated that India should immediately and unconditionally release political prisoners, and withdraw cases against youth, which are pending in the courts for the past 20 years.

Geelani maintained that if India failed to fulfill the minimum necessary conditions required for peace and resolution, mass protests would be intensified.

Meanwhile, curfew continued in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar city for the second day today while it was extended to two towns in Anantnag district following violent clashes between protestors and security forces in these areas.

Police has also imposed restrictions on the movement of people in nine districts of the Valley as a precautionary measure. It has been reported that four persons were injured in late night clashes between security forces and stone-pelting mobs in Batmaloo, Karan Nagar and Chota Bazaar area of the city.

Over sixty-nine people have been killed in the ingoing unrest in the Valley till date. (ANI)