Key Takeaways
- The Hurriyat Conference, a Kashmiri moderate separatist group, held its first meeting in Srinagar after Article 370 abrogation.
- Top leaders of the Hurriyat Conference, including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, attended the meeting, marking a significant development in Kashmir politics.
- The BJP government’s stance on separatists remains unchanged, with observers saying there is hardly a possibility of a policy shift.
Srinagar: For the first time after the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in August 2019, top leaders of a Kashmiri moderate separatist group met in Srinagar.
The meeting was held on Tuesday and attended by Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, senior leaders Prof. Abdul Gani Bhat, Bilal Lone, and Molvi Masroor Abbas Ansari.
“Alhumdulilah! After more than five years, I got a chance to be together with my dear colleagues Professor SB, Bilal SB, and Masroor SB.” Mirwaiz posted on X. “An emotional experience of different feelings, including missing colleagues in jail. But happy to see dear Prof. SB in good spirits and an alert mind at this age.”
Mirwaiz also posted a video of the meeting at his residence on.
The first meeting of the moderate separatist group was significant, as the BJP-led central government has adopted a hard line approach against them over the last five years.
In the last five years, Mirwaiz, who is also the head priest of Kashmir, has been mostly under house arrest and has also moved to the High Court against his “repeated detention.”.
The meeting took place days after Omar Abdullah’s government took office in Jammu and Kashmir. However, Omar’s government is likely to have no role in allowing this meeting, as the law and order come directly under Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
Observers say that there is hardly a possibility that the BJP government may change its policy on separatists.
