A senior Hurriyat leader has created a flutter by saying that two separatist leaders and his brother were killed by "our own people" and not security agencies, prompting Jammu and Kashmir government to term it as a "late admission" and a call for a probe to fix responsibility.
Pakistan's ruler Pervez Musharraf and his top diplomats made a U-turn on talks with India after the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee released Hurriyat leaders in early 2000 as part of his peace initiatives on Kashmir, according to a declassified US cable.
The state police on Friday arrested one of the two activists of the hardline Hurriyat Conference who were allegedly involved in a conspiracy to engineer violence in Kashmir valley by planning the killing of 10 to 15 people during a procession. The police swooped down at a place on Narbal-Magam Road and arrested Shabir Ahmed Wani, district president of the Hurriyat Conference led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
Mirwaiz to lead Hurriyat delegation to PoK
It said a "sudden rise" in terrorist-financing investigations was seen in 2023 and this was attributed to events arising out of incidents in Manipur that led to such probes in more than 50 cases.
Ahead of its Pakistan visit from Monday, separatist outfit Hurriyat Conference Sunday said it will discuss the Kashmir issue with President Pervez Musharraf and other Pakistan leaders.
Interestingly, the Hurriyat leaders had earlier agreed to meet Dr Singh on either of the two dates proposed by his office. What made them suddenly change their mind is not known.
The Union minister, however, indicated the dates for the talks would be set after a discussion with the Hurriyat leaders.
Three Hurriyat Conference leaders were taken into custody, as police foiled the separatists plan to march in connection with Martyrs day on Monday.
After the meeting with the Pak PM, separatist leaders admitted that differences persisted.
Hurriyat Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and several other leaders of the amalgam were placed under house arrest late on Wednesday night, ahead of a rally in old city on the third death anniversary of a slain separatist leader.
The announcement came a day after Hurriyat chairman Maulvi Abbas Ansari expressed willingness to hold the talks if the Centre extended an invitation.
Extremists groups have warned the Hurriyat Conference not to hold talks without first consulting them.
The separatist leaders were detained as a precautionary measure as authorities apprehended that their visit to the village might further deteriorate the already surcharged atmosphere, the sources said.
Breaking the ice, the Centre's interlocutors on Kashmir talked to Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq over the phone discussing the situation in the state and seeking time for a meeting.
India on Monday said there was 'no scope for misunderstanding or misrepresenting' its position
Several leaders of moderate Hurriyat Conference, including its chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, were placed under house arrest by the authorities in Srinagar after the separatist amalgam said it will visit the family of Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru.
The last Friday prayers of Ramzan (Jumatul Vida) were not allowed to be held at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar.
Separatist Kashmiri leader Ghulam Nabi Fai, who has been arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on charges of working for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, was the point man of contact for the Hurriyat leaders whenever they visited the United States.
The meeting presided over by APHC chairman Moulvi Mohammad Abbas Ansari is being attended by all senior members, including executive members Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Abdul Gani Bhat and Bilal Gani Lone, Hurriyat sources said.
The Hurriyat leaders were also prepared for talks with New Delhi before the visit.
"We completely support the ongoing peace process between India and Pakistan, which is extremely likely to produce a permanent and acceptable solution to the Kashmir problem," Professor Gani added.
The moderate Hurriyat Conference on Wednesday condemned the killing of two sisters at Sopore in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district terming it as an inhuman act. The statement hit back at those who had questioned separatists' silence over the killings.
Expressing grief over the Uttarakhand tragedy, the moderate Hurriyat Conference on Friday demanded restricting Amarnath Yatra to an earlier schedule to safeguard the fragile environment of Himalayas.
Aziz, chairman of Hurriyat constituent People's League, was nabbed by a team of Delhi Police Special Cell when he was coming out of the Pakistan High Commission on Thursday evening.
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Jammu and Kashmir, Hurriyat Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was released from house arrest on March 8, 2024.
One of the accused, Anjum Zamrooda Habib, admitted before Special Judge S N Dhingra that she had received the money from the Pakistan high commission to be paid as "nazrana" to Hurriyat Conference Chairman Abdul Ghani Bhat.
Hurriyat's Mirwaiz said Mufti has exposed his game plan by rushing to New Delhi to sort out the matter.
The Hurriyat chairman said an expansion of the seven-member executive can be considered, but the members will have to abide by the discipline of the amalgam.
The moderate Hurriyat Conference will participate in the second round table in Srinagar in May provided it is first called for a one-on-one with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, amalgam sources said Tuesday.
PM denies rift over talks with Hurriyat as he departs on his 3-nation tour
