Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday hit out at the Jammu and Kashmir Police for attaching the Hyderpora residence of late separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, which also served as the headquarters of his outfit Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, in central Kashmir’s Budgam district.
Calling the step “unfortunate and inhuman,” Mufti said Geelani’s 80-year-old widow continues to live in the house. Speaking to reporters in Anantnag, she remarked, “Today is Gandhi Ji’s day. He once said he saw a ray of light in Kashmir when the whole of Asia was burning. Now the same Kashmir is seen as criminal, its people as criminals, their homes and businesses as criminals. Even employees are being sacked by labelling them anti-nationals.”
She accused the government of criminalising ordinary Kashmiris. “Geelani Sahib has left this world, but his widow lives there. You might have differences with him, just as we have with RSS ideology, but attaching his home is inhuman. The BJP protested across Bihar over an insult to ‘mother’, but here even an 80-year-old widow has not been spared,” Mufti said.
The PDP chief warned that such steps only deepen alienation. “By attaching Geelani’s house, you are not reducing distances but widening them. You banned JEI schools, you targeted madrasas, now you attach homes. What have you made of Kashmir?” she asked.
Drawing comparisons with global conflicts, she added, “Even Israel and Hamas are attempting dialogue, but in Kashmir—where people stood with you in 1947—you are criminalising them. This is very bad.”
On Wednesday, J&K Police said the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat headquarters had been attached under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Officials said the three-story building on one kanal and one marla of land in Hyderpora, built along Srinagar’s Airport Road, was once used by Geelani to run the outfit. The Union Home Ministry banned Tehreek-e-Hurriyat in 2023 for “fomenting terrorism and spreading anti-India propaganda.” Geelani, who also led the Hurriyat Conference, died at the same residence in September 2022 and was buried nearby.
Targeting the BJP, Mufti said the ruling party was fuelling communal hatred to cover up failures. “They have no jobs, no hospitals, no roads. So they divide Hindus and Muslims to seek votes. What should I say about Yogi Ji, Bulldozer Baba? May God give them wisdom,” she said.
