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Ahmed Ali Fayyaz
SRINAGAR: Authorities on Thursday enforced undeclared curfew in the summer capital downtown to prevent the Kashmiri separatists from holding a remembrance rally for the Awami Action Committee chief Mirwaiz Maulvi Mohammad Farooq’ and the Peoples Conference founder chairman Abdul Gani Lone at Eidgah Grounds.
Cleric-politician Mirwaiz Farooq was gunned down by suspected militants at his home in Nagin area, near Hazratbal, on May 21, 1990, when allegedly the paramilitary CRPF later fired upon his funeral procession, killing over 50 mourners near Islamia College in Hawal. For over three years till armed insurgency erupted in 1990, Mirwaiz was part of the ruling alliance with Dr Farooq Abdullah’s National Conference and Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s Congress party in Jammu and Kashmir. Two MLAs owing allegiance to Mirwaiz were in the coalition. Later, one of them, Pir Mohammad Shafi, who represented Zadibal segment, was shot dead by suspected militants.
Lone was gunned down after his address to the Mirwaiz remembrance rally in broad daylight at Eidgah on May 21, 2002. Suspected militants also left two of Lone’s Police guards dead and another injured in the well planned assault. The assassins escaped as the shootout caused panic and stampede in the gathering of over 10,000 people.
Both, Mirwaiz and Lone, are buried in “Mazaar-e-Shuhada” (martyrs cemetery) at Eidgah. One of Lone’s sons, Bilal Lone, is his successor in the separatist alliance Hurriyat Conference while as his younger son, Sajjad Lone, is now a Minister in Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s government with BJP’s support. Mirwaiz Farooq’s only son and successor Mirwaiz Umar Farooq is Chairman of Hurriyat Conference.
Fearing pro-Pakistan slogans and waving of flags, authorities did not permit the remembrance rally where a large number of the Hurriyat leaders were scheduled to deliver speeches. Some of the top separatists, including heads of the Hurriyat’s two factions, Mirwaiz Umar and Syed Ali Shah Geelani were placed under “house arrest” as Police did not allow them to proceed towards Eidgah. Officials claimed there were only “restrictions in movement” in some areas of the downtown to maintain law and order. However, blocking of all roads to downtown with Concertina wires and heavy deployment of Police and CRPF was suggestive of curfew. Police and CRPF allowed only a limited movement.
Some of the separatists, besides MLA of Langet and President of Awami Ittihad Party Engineer Rashid, were taken into custody while attempting to head for Eidgah. They were reportedly set free in the evening.
Both factions of Hurriyat had called for a shutdown in the Valley. While as most of the shops, business establishments and even some education institutions remained closed, only skeletal vehicular traffic operated in Srinagar and other district headquarters. However, almost all the government offices and banks functioned smoothly.
A spokesman of Mirwaiz-led Hurriyat condemned enforcement of undeclared curfew and the separatist leaders’ detention. He alleged in a statement that Police conducted raids on the residences of some separatists even as many of them were detained and arrested at different places. He alleged that Mufti’s government had adopted the policy of detaining and silencing the separatist opposition with force.