Geelani and the separatist politics in Kashmir

Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Chairman of Hurriyat Conference, announced his resignation from the forum in an audio message that went viral. The resignation of the nonagenarian will have a significant influence on the overall separatist activities in Jammu and Kashmir, writes ETV Bharat's News Editor Bilal Bhat.

Hyderabad: Syed Ali Shah Geelani, ninety-year-old, life-time Chairman of Hurriyat Conference, resigned from the forum on Monday which will have a significant influence on the overall separatist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

His statement of deserting the Hurriyat is tantamount to virtually quitting the politics, leaving a great amount of scope for either less or negligible political ground reaction, given his ailing fragile age. This probably may have come as a major relief for the law enforcing agencies in Kashmir as he was seen as a potential trigger for another unrest if he would have died as Hurriyat chief.

He has made it easy for the government and the people dealing with Kashmir - at the central government level, which is probably one of the reasons that the top BJP leader Ram Madhav, one of the architects of downgrading the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir to two union territories, without losing a minute tweeted not just once but thrice one after another ‘Gilani resigned from Hurriyat’ with the letter Geelani had shot attached with his first tweet. Madhav in his third tweet writes ‘the man was singularly responsible for ruining the lives of thousands of Kashmiri youth and families; for pushing valley into terror and violence. Now resigns from Hurriyat without giving a reason. Does it absolve him of all the past sins?’ This shows Geelani’s significance given his political relevance though he had been silent for almost a year now.

Geelani’s Hurriyat or his statements were seldom heard of except small-time messages since the abrogation of Article 370 - which gave the erstwhile state a special status- nor has he issued any protest calendar. Geelani’s resignation letter reached people hassle-free with the audio message detailing the internal bickering and the squabbling between Hurriyat members over money and power in Kashmir and across the border went viral in minutes and hit the headlines of both regional and national news platforms.

The letter clearly indicates that the entire faction of his Hurriyat has given up on separatism and have resolved that they are no more relevant. It is the same leader who claimed the reins when he enjoyed the absolute popularity and the issue was Amarnath Land row in 2008. He was unwilling to even accept there could be anyone parallel to him in the ranks. In fact, it was the same time when he was accused of signing a legal will nominating his elder son Dr Nayeem as his successor of the Hurriyat. It had created mayhem in the entire separatist camp and later forcing him to withdraw the deed.

The popularity he enjoyed then was filled with fewer thorns and the risk wasn’t as high as it could be now given the government’s reaction to separatism particularly in the aftermath of 5th August 2019 decision.

Geelani has always been a critical voice against the government and apparently, his uncompromising stand had given him a sort of entitlement to look at other separatists’ point of view critically. It was Geelani who called Altaf Ahmad alias Azam Inqilabi’s move a surrender when he gave up arms in the early 90s. Inqilabi had also problems with people sitting in Pakistan albeit he was not accused of any embezzlement. When Geelani parted ways with the original Hurriyat, in 2003, he not only accused the leadership of a sell-out for taking part in a dialogue with India and Pakistan. He launched another faction of Hurriyat and called it a ‘purification process’.

It is intriguing that a letter is made public in which Geelani confirms embezzlements when India’s premier investigating agency NIA is already investigating money laundering cases of many separatists including his son-in-law.

Geelani’s resignation letter has virtually opened a can of worms. From Srinagar to Muzaffarabad, there are many speculations over his resignations letter, to which Geelani’s granddaughter has tweeted ‘one cannot resign from an ideology, a political stand, belief and faith. This message is probably for those in the ranks who were trying to throw Geelani out of Hurriyat and had almost succeeded but before they would do that Geelani sought an honourable exit and quit the forum.'