The pro-Pakistan hawk among the Kashmir separatists, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, was given a quiet burial in the wee hours of Thursday after he died late night on Wednesday following chest pain.
Amid tight security, the 92 years old Geelani was laid to rest in a cemetery at a mosque near his Hyderpura residence in the outskirts of Srinagar at about 3.30 am in the presence of his close relatives and top police officers, sources said. The authorities were apprehensive that his burial during day time might attract large crowds and also lead to violence.
Some Hurriyat activists have reportedly been taken into custody by the police to thwart any violence.
Within hours of Geelani’s death, the race for his succession has begun with his Pakistan based representative Abdullah Geelani being the front runner. News of Geelani’s death was broken by him on the twitter last night.
Reports said that a complete shutdown was being observed across the Kashmir valley even though the administration has imposed restrictions and suspended mobile and internet services as a precautionary measure.
Geelani’s close associates said that they wanted to lay him to rest at the Idgah downtown Srinagar, but the authorities did not permit. His body was buried according to rituals under heavy police deployment.
Barricades have been erected on the streets and barbed wire rolls placed at roads leading to Geelani’s residence.
Security forces have reportedly been deployed in the north Kashmir’s Baramulla district and Sopore to which he belonged.
Geelani had been ailing for past many years and had been under house arrest for the last 12 years after leading several anti-India protests. A family member said that he developed chest pain and congestion on Wednesday afternoon and died at about 10.30 pm.
Geelani had few months ago quit his hardline Hurriyat Conference faction, saying that it had failed to counter New Delhi’s efforts to tighten its grip over Kashmir.
Last year, the Pakistan government awarded him with Nishan-e-Pakistan, the highest civilian award of the country.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a day’s official mourning and the country’s flag will fly half mast. Geelani had struggled “all his life for his people & their right to self determination”, Khan tweeted.
Hurriyat Conference was formed by various separatist groups in Kashmir in 1993 but it split in 2003 because of Geelani’s hardline on terrorism. In 2004, Geelani also parted ways from Jamat-e-Islami and formed his own political outfit, Tehreek-e-Hurriyat.
Geelani’s electoral career started from Sopore from where he contested his first Assembly elections in 1972. Thereafter, he won the subsequent elections in 1977 and 1987.
The NIA had in 2019 raided the house of Geelani’s son Naseem Geelani in a case related to terror funding.
Kashmiri leaders have mourned the death of Geelani. PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti took to the twitter saying; “Saddned by the news of Geelani sahab’s passing away. We may not have agreed on most things but I respect him for his steadfastness & standing by his beliefs”.
Extending condolences to the family of Geelani, Peoples Conference leader Sajad Lone said; “He was an esteemed colleague of my late father”.