- Friday, April 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
POLICE in Jammu and Kashmir have charged members of the family of late separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani under anti-terror law for wrapping his body in the Pakistani national flag and raising anti-India slogans, official sources said on Sunday (5).
According to one police officer, a first information report (FIR) was registered at Jammu and Kashmir’s Budgam police station under Section 353 of the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Geelani, a former leader of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference in Jammu Kashmir, died at his residence in Jammu and Kashmir on September 1 at the age of 92. He was a leading figure in Kashmir’s defiance against New Delhi and had been under house arrest for a long time.
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The veteran leader’s death saw tense moments in Jammu and Kashmir with instances of clashes between local people and the law-keepers. His family also accused the Indian authorities of burying Geelani in a local cemetery in the absence of any of his kin after snatching the body from home. The law-keepers denied the charges saying they were “baseless rumours” by “some vested interests”.
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It was reported that a video which went viral on social media showed Geelani’s relatives, mostly women, trying to prevent armed policemen from entering into the room where the body of Geelani, wrapped in a Pakistani flag, was being laid.
The police sources added that unspecified family members and some others were charged on Saturday (4) under the UAPA, Associated Press reported. It was also said that the accused people were yet to be taken into custody.
The anti-terror law has often come under attack from the rights activists who have called it draconian and alleged that it is being misused by those in power to quell opposing voices.
Geelani’s son Naseem said on Sunday that a police officer visited them the day before and told them that a case had been registered. He did not give details about the meeting but added that there were scuffles as the police removed the body of his father.
“Amid the chaos, we didn’t really know what was happening. We were mourning,” he was quoted as saying by Associated Press.
Local police sources, on the other hand, alleged that people present at Geelani’s residence misbehaved with top officials. They said anti-Indian slogans were being given and efforts were also being made to instigate people through social media and phone calls.
Authorities suspended mobile and internet services in Kashmir to maintain law and order following Geelani’s death.
On Sunday, the police said the situation across Kashmir remained peaceful and no untoward incident was reported barring one minor stone-pelting incident in Budgam’s Narkara area, the New Indian Express daily reported.
