Big setback to Pakistan! Geelani's granddaughter and Shabir Shah's daughter 'disassociate' from Kashmir separatist ideology
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Srinagar, Mar 23: As major transformations are taking place in Jammu and Kashmir, another remarkable narrative has unfolded in the Union Territory. Disassociating themselves with Kashmir separatist ideology, Syed Ali Shah Hurriyat founder Geelani's granddaughter Ruwa Shah and Shabir Ahmad Shah's daughter Sama Shabir have pledged loyalty to the sovereignty of the Union of India.
Ruwa Shah, whose father and Geelani’s son-in-law Altaf Ahmad Shah died last year while in jail over charges of terror funding, also distanced herself from the Hurriyat Conference faction founded by her late grandfather, in a notice in the newspapers last week. She declared she had no inclination or sympathy towards its ideology. "I am a loyal citizen of India not affiliated with any organisation or association which has an agenda against the Union of India and I owe allegiance to the Constitution of my country (India),” Shah said.
In a separate public notice, published in a local newspaper Thursday, 23-year-old Sama Shabir said she was “a loyal Indian citizen” and distanced herself from the banned separatist organisation founded by her father, who is currently in Tihar Jail on money laundering and terror funding charges.
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“I, Sama Shabir Shah… want to clarify that I have not been associated nor have an affiliation with the Democratic Freedom Party, nor do have any inclination towards the ideology of the Democratic Freedom Party. I hereby declare that if any person uses my name with the said party, Democratic Freedom Party, I shall take legal action against them… I am a loyal citizen of India and I am not affiliated with any person or organisation which is against the sovereignty of the Union of India.”
Who is Geelani?
Geelani was one of the masterminds of the separatist movement in Kashmir, who founded the Hurriyat Conference in 1993. He was a staunch supporter of Jammu and Kashmir’s accession with Pakistan and was the face and voice of Pakistan in Kashmir for around seven decades. He peddled in terror activities in the Valley and instigated several Kashmiri Muslim youths to pick up arms against the state. The Pakistan government also awarded him with Nishan-e-Pakistan, the highest civilian honour of the country.
Also Read: Syed Geelani: Architect of a dark, turbulent period in the history of Kashmir
Who is Shabir Shah?
Shabir Shah, 70, the founder of the Democratic Freedom Party, has been in jail since 2017. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in July 2017 and lodged in Tihar Jail. In 2019, the National Investigation Agency took his custody in an alleged terror funding case, along with separatist leaders Masarat Alam and Syeda Asiya Andrabi. The government also banned the Democratic Freedom Party as an unlawful association under the UAPA.
It is perhaps the first time that a family member of a separatist leader in Jammu and Kashmir has published such notices.