On March 11, in the sprawling compound of the Pakistani High Commission in Delhi’s Chankayapuri locality, an usual prayer ceremony was held. More than three dozen people said Amen to every word uttered by a cleric. It was not a prayer for the victims of terrorism in Pakistan, or for the stability of the country that has been reeling with extremist violence for over a decade. It was to pray for Kashmir’s ailing veteran separatist politician Syed Ali Geelani — a strong defender of Pakistan in the valley who has been in the middle of the political crisis in Kashmir for more than 25 years. Geelani is a staunch advocate of Kashmir’s merger with Pakistan.
The 86-year-old hardliner was admitted to a Delhi hospital last week after he complained of chest pain. He has since been discharged. Geelani is suffering from kidney cancer, heart ailment and bronchitis, and generally shifts to India’s capital in winter to be away from the chilling Kashmir cold. But this time, he spent most of the winter in Srinagar – Kashmir’s summer capital. The news of his illness spread fast, even trending on social media, with prayers pouring in from all over the world. Even the former chief minister Omar Abdullah joined in.
Why is Geelani’s health such a major concern?
In the last nearly three decades, Geelani has emerged as a strong voice for Kashmir’s “freedom” from India and is seen as the ultimate icon of defiance and resistance. In other words, Delhi fears him as he continues to challenge its rule in Kashmir and shows no signs of compromise, in contrast to his colleagues in the rest of the separatist camp. When Kashmir saw massive unrest in 2008 and 2010, it was Geelani who had the last word. By default, he helped the authorities bring the situation under control. When the youth were pelting stones at the police and Indian paramilitary forces in 2010, Geelani came out to ask them to stop. “I understand the passion for freedom you have,” Geelani said, “I am as passionate as you are, but we will fight peacefully. If they stop you, you sit down and ask them to open fire.” It worked. He faced criticism because the move was seen as having helped the state government led by Omar Abdullah, but it became an established fact that his words meant a lot to the youth in Kashmir.
Earlier this year, when the Jammu and Kashmir High Court placed a controversial ban on beef, Geelani stepped in again and asked people to restrain from slaughtering cows publicly to respect the religious sentiments of other communities. This saved the Mufti government from a serious crisis.
Born in September 1929 near the north Kashmir town of Sopore, Geelani went through interesting transitions in his life. After studying in Srinagar and Lahore, he had his apprenticeship in politics at Mujahid Manzil, the headquarters of pro-India National Conference. But deeply influenced by Jamaat-e-Islami founder Maulana Abul A’la Maududi, he joined his party and became an Islamist. Then, he began to link Kashmir’s fate with Pakistan – the country that was founded on the Two-Nation Theory. He participated in electoral politics under the Indian constitution – something he now terms “haram” – and has been a three-time member of the legislative assembly from Sopore. He is often criticized for having been part of the Indian electoral process, but he defends it by saying that he did it in the larger interest of the resolution of the Kashmir problem. Geelani’s hardline stance is not limited to dialogue with New Delhi. He took a strong position in his parent organization Jamaat-e-Islami when he defended the recourse of Kashmiri youth to militancy and criticized the Jamaat leadership for not having a clear stance on the issue.
When the pro-government militia Ikhwan let loose a reign of terror, Jamaat-e-Islami was its number one target. That led to its leadership distancing itself from the armed struggle. In early 1990s, the Hizbul Mujahideen – then a formidable militant organization – was declared an armed wing of the Jamaat, as most of its cadres were inspired by its political ideology. Geelani continued to support militancy, and does so even today.
When the All Parties Hurriyat Conference – a conglomerate of more than 20 political and social organizations espousing the cause of freedom – split in 2003, Geelani founded his own Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, breaking away from the Jamaat. His Tehreek became the basic constituent of the Hurriyat Conference faction led by him. The other faction is led by the moderate separatist Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. It was Geelani who raised the banner of revolt in Hurriyat, seeking action against Sajjad Lone – a leader from the People’s Conference (PC) who he said had fielded proxy candidates in the 2002 assembly election. Founded by his father Abdul Gani Lone, the PC was part of Hurriyat Conference. The Hurriyat hesitated to take action, but Geelani was proven right in 2009 when Sajjad finally joined the electoral bandwagon.
Why is Geelani relevant or popular?
Notwithstanding his support for militant violence and refusal to carry out any kind of dialogue on Kashmir, Geelani has emerged as a popular leader over the past decade – a fact even his rivals admit.
It is mostly because of the consistency of his position, and New Delhi’s continuous failure to recognize Kashmir as an issue and engage with its political leadership. Two other prominent political leaders – Farooq Abdullah and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed – also fell ill in 2014 and 2016 respectively, but their illness did not go viral on social media. Nor were any prayer meetings held in Kashmir. Farooq and Mufti (who died in Delhi on January 7) have dominated the political scene of Kashmir for a very long time. Farooq had a kidney transplant in London in November 2014 and Mufti battled for his life for 15 days in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was the most significant leader Kashmir has produced, and his funeral was attended by over a million people in 1982, but even he fell out of favor. During the armed rebellion, there was a 24-hour police guard at his grave.
Geelani attracts large crowds, leading to massive pro-freedom processions, and that is why the authorities did not allow him to go out of his home for about ten months. After his return from Delhi on April 15 last year, he could only offer the congregational Friday prayers once in May. He literally freed himself on February 6 when he flew to Delhi. For Geelani, going to jail or remaining under house arrest is not new. He first went to jail in 1962 and spent over 10 years in jails (not continuously) for his strong anti-India views.
Ghulam Rasool Kar, a veteran Congress leader who passed away last year, had said Geelani’s popularity was the outcome of people’s frustration after been abandoned by their leaders. “This nation is in search of heroes as it has been ditched by its leaders,” he told a journalist. “So they see satisfaction when someone defies or stands up with his head high.” Geelani had once defeated Kar in an assembly election from his home constituency in Sopore.
Syed Ali Geelani draws immense support from the youth in Kashmir, and that is the reason he can publicly claim it was the people who had failed the separatist leadership, when they participated in the elections. Hardly any leader would admit his failure so candidly.
In the changing political dynamics in Kashmir, when a sense of despondency and frustration especially among the youth has reached a crescendo, Geelani is seen as someone who challenges Delhi. They may not always agree with his strategy, but New Delhi’s continued refusal to recognize Kashmir as a political dispute has vindicated his stance. For example, when the Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq began a dialogue with Delhi in 2004, Geelani said it would yield nothing, because “Delhi is not sincere and serious”. The dialogue did eventually fail.
Geelani is the only Kashmiri leader who opposed Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf’s peace process with India. He was sidelined, and the Mirwaiz became Islamabad’s favorite. At a time when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is making peace overtures towards India, Geelani may not seem to fit in the picture. But he is and will remain their best bet in Kashmir.
The author is a veteran journalist from Srinagar and the editor-in-chief of
The Rising Kashmir
The 86-year-old hardliner was admitted to a Delhi hospital last week after he complained of chest pain. He has since been discharged. Geelani is suffering from kidney cancer, heart ailment and bronchitis, and generally shifts to India’s capital in winter to be away from the chilling Kashmir cold. But this time, he spent most of the winter in Srinagar – Kashmir’s summer capital. The news of his illness spread fast, even trending on social media, with prayers pouring in from all over the world. Even the former chief minister Omar Abdullah joined in.
Why is Geelani’s health such a major concern?
In the last nearly three decades, Geelani has emerged as a strong voice for Kashmir’s “freedom” from India and is seen as the ultimate icon of defiance and resistance. In other words, Delhi fears him as he continues to challenge its rule in Kashmir and shows no signs of compromise, in contrast to his colleagues in the rest of the separatist camp. When Kashmir saw massive unrest in 2008 and 2010, it was Geelani who had the last word. By default, he helped the authorities bring the situation under control. When the youth were pelting stones at the police and Indian paramilitary forces in 2010, Geelani came out to ask them to stop. “I understand the passion for freedom you have,” Geelani said, “I am as passionate as you are, but we will fight peacefully. If they stop you, you sit down and ask them to open fire.” It worked. He faced criticism because the move was seen as having helped the state government led by Omar Abdullah, but it became an established fact that his words meant a lot to the youth in Kashmir.
Earlier this year, when the Jammu and Kashmir High Court placed a controversial ban on beef, Geelani stepped in again and asked people to restrain from slaughtering cows publicly to respect the religious sentiments of other communities. This saved the Mufti government from a serious crisis.
Born in September 1929 near the north Kashmir town of Sopore, Geelani went through interesting transitions in his life. After studying in Srinagar and Lahore, he had his apprenticeship in politics at Mujahid Manzil, the headquarters of pro-India National Conference. But deeply influenced by Jamaat-e-Islami founder Maulana Abul A’la Maududi, he joined his party and became an Islamist. Then, he began to link Kashmir’s fate with Pakistan – the country that was founded on the Two-Nation Theory. He participated in electoral politics under the Indian constitution – something he now terms “haram” – and has been a three-time member of the legislative assembly from Sopore. He is often criticized for having been part of the Indian electoral process, but he defends it by saying that he did it in the larger interest of the resolution of the Kashmir problem. Geelani’s hardline stance is not limited to dialogue with New Delhi. He took a strong position in his parent organization Jamaat-e-Islami when he defended the recourse of Kashmiri youth to militancy and criticized the Jamaat leadership for not having a clear stance on the issue.
"If they stop you, sit down and ask them to open fire"
When the pro-government militia Ikhwan let loose a reign of terror, Jamaat-e-Islami was its number one target. That led to its leadership distancing itself from the armed struggle. In early 1990s, the Hizbul Mujahideen – then a formidable militant organization – was declared an armed wing of the Jamaat, as most of its cadres were inspired by its political ideology. Geelani continued to support militancy, and does so even today.
When the All Parties Hurriyat Conference – a conglomerate of more than 20 political and social organizations espousing the cause of freedom – split in 2003, Geelani founded his own Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, breaking away from the Jamaat. His Tehreek became the basic constituent of the Hurriyat Conference faction led by him. The other faction is led by the moderate separatist Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. It was Geelani who raised the banner of revolt in Hurriyat, seeking action against Sajjad Lone – a leader from the People’s Conference (PC) who he said had fielded proxy candidates in the 2002 assembly election. Founded by his father Abdul Gani Lone, the PC was part of Hurriyat Conference. The Hurriyat hesitated to take action, but Geelani was proven right in 2009 when Sajjad finally joined the electoral bandwagon.
Why is Geelani relevant or popular?
Notwithstanding his support for militant violence and refusal to carry out any kind of dialogue on Kashmir, Geelani has emerged as a popular leader over the past decade – a fact even his rivals admit.
It is mostly because of the consistency of his position, and New Delhi’s continuous failure to recognize Kashmir as an issue and engage with its political leadership. Two other prominent political leaders – Farooq Abdullah and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed – also fell ill in 2014 and 2016 respectively, but their illness did not go viral on social media. Nor were any prayer meetings held in Kashmir. Farooq and Mufti (who died in Delhi on January 7) have dominated the political scene of Kashmir for a very long time. Farooq had a kidney transplant in London in November 2014 and Mufti battled for his life for 15 days in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was the most significant leader Kashmir has produced, and his funeral was attended by over a million people in 1982, but even he fell out of favor. During the armed rebellion, there was a 24-hour police guard at his grave.
Geelani attracts large crowds, leading to massive pro-freedom processions, and that is why the authorities did not allow him to go out of his home for about ten months. After his return from Delhi on April 15 last year, he could only offer the congregational Friday prayers once in May. He literally freed himself on February 6 when he flew to Delhi. For Geelani, going to jail or remaining under house arrest is not new. He first went to jail in 1962 and spent over 10 years in jails (not continuously) for his strong anti-India views.
Ghulam Rasool Kar, a veteran Congress leader who passed away last year, had said Geelani’s popularity was the outcome of people’s frustration after been abandoned by their leaders. “This nation is in search of heroes as it has been ditched by its leaders,” he told a journalist. “So they see satisfaction when someone defies or stands up with his head high.” Geelani had once defeated Kar in an assembly election from his home constituency in Sopore.
Syed Ali Geelani draws immense support from the youth in Kashmir, and that is the reason he can publicly claim it was the people who had failed the separatist leadership, when they participated in the elections. Hardly any leader would admit his failure so candidly.
In the changing political dynamics in Kashmir, when a sense of despondency and frustration especially among the youth has reached a crescendo, Geelani is seen as someone who challenges Delhi. They may not always agree with his strategy, but New Delhi’s continued refusal to recognize Kashmir as a political dispute has vindicated his stance. For example, when the Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq began a dialogue with Delhi in 2004, Geelani said it would yield nothing, because “Delhi is not sincere and serious”. The dialogue did eventually fail.
Geelani is the only Kashmiri leader who opposed Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf’s peace process with India. He was sidelined, and the Mirwaiz became Islamabad’s favorite. At a time when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is making peace overtures towards India, Geelani may not seem to fit in the picture. But he is and will remain their best bet in Kashmir.
The author is a veteran journalist from Srinagar and the editor-in-chief of
The Rising Kashmir