SRINAGAR: Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has denied his role in the formation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as was alleged by former RAW Chief A S Dulat in his book, even as the ruling BJP demanded a probe into the politician-militant nexus in the state.
“The claim that the PDP is a creation of Geelani and Mufti Muhammed Sayeed is a blatant and Himalayan lie,” a spokesman of Geelani, Ayaz Akbar said.
In his book, Kashmir - The Vajpayee Years Dulat says both Geelani and Mufti are ‘Pirs’, families from whom Kashmir gets its religious preachers and that it explains their proximity.
Rejecting the charge, Geelani’s spokesman said the PDP was setup by Indian secret agencies. “The decision on the creation of the PDP was taken at the residence of a top IB official”.
“The PDP’s creation was a deep conspiracy against the movement of Kashmir. The green flag and inkpot/pen as election symbol was also an idea of Indian policy makers to confuse and puzzle the public of Kashmir like they did in the past when they deceived the people by showing them green hanky and Pakistani salt,” he said.
Akbar said Dulat during his tenure as RAW chief tried his best to meet Geelani but he was unable to do so. “And now he is giving vent to his anger and has fabricated things about Geelani that he helped in the formation of the PDP,” he said.
Terming Dulat’s allegation a “Himalayan lie”, he said Mufti has been an Indian by conviction from the very first day of his political career and compared to other pro-Indian politicians he proved to be more dangerous and fatal to the collective national interest of Kashmiris. “So there is no question of any soft corner for him or his party”.
Meanwhile, reacting to Dulat’s allegation that some mainstream politicians in the state had links with militants, the ruling BJP has demanded a probe to identify such politicians.
State BJP spokesman Khalid Jehangir said the Chief Minister should ask the investigating agencies to look into the past of the politicians and ascertain whether they still had militant links or not.“There are reports that separatists have been seeking favours from the mainstream politicians and they have been obliged on many occasions. We believe that this practice should be done away with and people at the helm should concentrate on addressing the issues concerning the masses,” he said. Jehangir said the CM should reinvestigate the Hawala(illegal money transaction network) cases registered against the separatists in the state.
“Many cases about separatists receiving money through Hawala channels were registered in different police stations but investigations were stopped half way. The CM should get these cases reinvestigated to ascertain how much money was pumped into Jammu and Kashmir to keep the pot boiling,” he said and alleged that the separatists had lived a luxurious life.