Two top separatist leaders rel
eased after few hours of detention
Top Kashmiri separatist leaders including Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Shabbir Shah, Nayeem Khan and Abbas Ansari were on Thursday put under house arrest in Srinagar.
Hardline Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani is already under house arrest, police sources said. Another separatist leader Yasin Malik has been taken to Kothi Bagh Police Station in Srinagar.
Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit had invited Geelani for a meeting on August 24 with Pakistan National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz, who will be in the national capital for talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval.
Moderate separatist leaders have also been invited for a reception being hosted by Mr. Basit for the visiting Pakistani official on August 23.
Latest reports suggest that Police in Jammu and Kashmir have released from house arrest two top separatist leaders few hours after their detention.
A Hurriyat spokesman said that police lifted the seige from the residences of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Moulana Abbas Ansari at 11:30 am.
“I don’t what forced this change of heart,” Islam said when asked whether anything was communicated to the Hurriyat leaders after their release.
The move was seen as part of efforts to prevent the pro-freedom camp from meeting Pakistan National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz in New Delhi later this week ahead of NSA talks between India and Pakistan.