Kashmir ‘million march’ crackdown: Mirwaiz placed under house arrest
Police on Wednesday put moderate separatist, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, under house detention as part of the crackdown to foil ‘million march’ call of separatists on Prime Minister’s visit to Kashmir on November 7.
Police on Wednesday put moderate separatist, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, under house detention as part of the crackdown to foil ‘million march’ call of separatists on Prime Minister’s visit to Kashmir on November 7.
Mirwaiz was restricted to his residence in Nigeen area of Srinagar when a small posse of police advised him not to venture out from early morning.
“They blocked the house entrance and told him that he won’t be allowed to leave,” said a spokesman of the leader.
The move came after pro-Pakistan Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief, Asiya Andrabi, was detained by police on Monday night in her house when she was in a meeting with her party activists discussing the modalities of the ‘million march’.
Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has called for a ‘million march’ programme at TRC grounds in Srinagar to send a message to the world that “Kashmiri people have not given up their age-old demand for plebiscite”.
The venue for the march is just a few hundred metres away from the SK Stadium, where PM Narendra Modi is scheduled to address his rally.
Almost all top-rung separatist leaders including Mirwaiz, Andrabi and Yasin Malik have expressed their support for the march.
In response, the police launched a massive clampdown on the separatists. While Syed Ali Geelani has been placed under house arrest to foil the programme, Yasin Malik, Shabir Shah and others have been detained in various police stations.
Police is now looking for middle and lower-rung activists of the separatist camp.
Besides lending support to the ‘million march’, Mirwaiz has appealed people to participate in ‘solidarity day’ at Jamia Masjid on Friday (November 6) to pay tribute to the “martyrs of Jammu massacre” of 1947.