Hurriyat Conference (M) Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, was once again placed under house arrest by the government in the morning and was released moments before the Friday prayers were to be held at historic Jamia Masjid.Addressing the people at the mosque Mirwaiz warned those in power that anti-people and aggressive polices adopted by them are resulting in severe consequences for the people and asked them to put an end to it as it will not stop people from striving for their fundamental political right or douse the sentiment for freedom among Kashmiris, but will intensify it more Condemning the government decision for converting the surroundings of Jamia Masjid into a military garrison, Mirwaiz stated that the restrictions, hurdles and laying of barbed wires to obstruct the roads was the reflection of the anti-Muslim polices adopted by the state. He said it was a well thought out plan to target Jamia Masjid and make efforts to end its centrality as a political and religious institution of Kashmiris by stopping their arrival into the Masjid. He further stated that such draconian measures were aimed to silence the voice being raised from the pulpit of Jamia Masjid advocating to grants social, political and religious rights to Kashmiris.
Denouncing the use of brutal force in the form of pellets, tear gas canisters, and arrest of the students in Srinagar, Sopore, Pulwama and other places Mirwaiz termed such actions by government forces as worst form of state sponsored terrorism. He said, “extreme state repression in all forms further pushes the youth to resist and Stand up against injustice . Terming the siege of two dozen villages of Shopian by the Indian forces as an announcement of war by the government of India against the Kashmiri, Mirwaiz said the ransacking of houses, and spreading fear and terror among the residents in Shopian was condemnable in all terms.Taking a dig at the section of Indian Electronic media, Mirwaiz stated that it smacked of hypocrisy that the media was becoming partial and was hiding the crimes of the state. Instead of reporting the Human rights violations and accesses committed by the stated; APHC Chairman stated that the section of Indian media was justifying the atrocities and undemocratic and inhuman policies adopted by the state which reflects their double standards.Hurriyat (M) Chairman also stated that Indian was shifting towards pan-Hindutva country, adding, the minorities were under threat and Muslims were killed for even beating beef.Following the programme of joint resistance, Hurriyat (M) chairman along with senior leaders including GN Zaki, Mushtaq Sofi, Abdul Majeed Wani, Ghulam Qadir, Jaffer kashmiri, advocate, Yasir Dalaal, and large number of people staged a protest outside the Jamia Masjid. The protesters protested against the wanton repression and use of force against students in Srinagar and Sopore. (KNS)