Hawk Geelani says no, his flock split

Even as Hurriyat hardline chief Syed Ali Shah Geelani said today that his faction would not board the June 2 bus to Muzaffarabad due to Paki...

Even as Hurriyat hardline chief Syed Ali Shah Geelani said today that his faction would not board the June 2 bus to Muzaffarabad due to Pakistan’s ‘‘flexible’’ approach on Kashmir, some of its constituents have left their options open for the cross-LoC trip.

Geelani told reporters that the amalgam, in its Shoora (advisory committee) meeting, decided not to board the bus. ‘‘Though some members suggested that we accept the invitation, the majority recommended against it,’’ he said.

Sources present at the meeting said some constituents may break away from the Geelani faction on this

issue. The National Front, one of its main constituents, is meeting tomorrow to finalise its decision.

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‘‘We wanted to board the bus and thus put our arguments forcefully. There were more than five members who supported our point of view,’’ said Nayeem Khan, chairman of National Front.

At the meeting, four constituents of the amalgam wanted to board the bus while 11 opposed the proposal. The constituents who favoured the Muzaffarabad trip included National Front, Peoples Conference, Anjumani Sharee Shian and Mahaze Azadi.

Pro-Pakistan People’s League abstained from the meeting, saying it will not board the bus.

Geelani, however, said all the constituents have authorised him to announce the decision not to board the bus.

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‘‘We want to show the resentment towards the policy of Pakistan on the Kashmir issue,’’ said Geelani, adding ‘‘Pakistan has been very flexible.’’

Bashaarat Masood

Bashaarat Masood is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express. He has been covering Jammu and Kashmir, especially the conflict-ridden Kashmir valley, for two decades. Bashaarat joined The Indian Express after completing his Masters in Mass Communication and Journalism from the University in Kashmir. He has been writing on politics, conflict and development. Bashaarat was awarded with the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards in 2012 for his stories on the Pathribal fake encounter. ... Read More