Right-wing activists badger Geelani at event in city

Hurriyat chairperson Syed Ali Shah Geelani was on Monday afternoon heckled by right-wing activists in the city.

Hurriyat chairperson Syed Ali Shah Geelani was on Monday afternoon heckled by right-wing activists in the city.

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Geelani was in the city to speak at an event organised by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS).

The attack happened when Geelani arrived at the venue in Civil Lines. Members of Bhagat Singh Kranti Sena (BSKS) and Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) surrounded Geelani, shouted slogans demanding that he leave the venue and snatched his cap.

Police, however, claimed that Geelani was not physically harmed.

“Early intervention by the police saved Geelani from any physical attack. He was safely escorted to the venue amidst sloganeering,” claimed a senior police official. This is not the first time that Geelani has been booed and heckled in the city.

In 2010, a shoe was hurled at Geelani and slogans shouted out against him and Arundhati Roy at a seminar.

The attack also elicited a quick response from Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, Omar Abdullah on micro-blogging site, Twitter.

“These BSKS & ABVP goons are bloody idiots. Anyone can assault an old man. As if attacking SASG will make the Kashmir issue just disappear,” he wrote.

ABVP state secretary Rohit Chahal, meanwhile, said that his outfit would continue to protest against Geelani’s presence at any seminars in the Capital.