ISLAMABAD: Indian authorities cracked down on public movement and imposed a near-total communications blackout Thursday in occupied Kashmir after the death of Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani – actions condemned by Pakistan.
Geelani, who died late Wednesday at age 91, was buried in a quiet funeral at a local graveyard organised by authorities under harsh restrictions, his son Naseem Geelani told The Associated Press.
According to Geo news, Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s body was wrapped in the green and white flag of Pakistan prior to his burial. The Indian occupation forces, however, snatched the body from the family and forcibly buried it in a cemetery in Haiderpura.
Naseem said the family had planned the burial at the main martyrs’ graveyard in Srinagar, the region’s main city, as per his will but were disallowed by police.
“They snatched his body and forcibly buried him. Nobody from the family was present for his burial. We tried to resist but they overpowered us and even scuffled with women,” said Naseem Geelani.
The Press Trust of India news agency reported that officials buried Geelani’s body and disallowed any mass funeral in anticipation of anti-India protests.
Pakistan “strongly” condemned the “barbaric move” and called on the global community to take note of the “egregious situation” and hold India to account for its breaches of rights and international humanitarian laws.
We strongly condemn the barbaric act of snatching of mortal remains of #SyedAliShahGeelani from his family by Indian Occupation Forces. Int’l community must take note of this egregious situation in #IIOJK & hold India to account for its breaches of int’l HR & humanitarian laws.
— Spokesperson 🇵🇰 MoFA (@ForeignOfficePk) September 2, 2021
As most people remained locked inside their homes, armed police and soldiers patrolled the tense region. Government forces placed steel barricades and razor wire across many roads, bridges and intersections and set up additional checkpoints across towns and villages in the Kashmir Valley.
Authorities cut most of the cellphone networks and mobile internet services in a common tactic employed by India in anticipation of mass protests.
Geelani spearheaded occupied Kashmir’s movement for the right to self-determination and was an ideologue and staunch proponent of merging Kashmir with Pakistan. He strongly opposed any dialogue with New Delhi, a position rejected outright by successive Indian governments who often dubbed him as a hardline politician.
Geelani was also the face of Kashmir’s civilian defiance against Indian rule. He led a faction of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, a conglomerate of various Kashmiri political and religious groups that was formed in 1993 to spearhead a movement for the region’s right to self-determination.
The group used civil disobedience in the form of shutdowns and protests as a tactic to counter Indian rule.
For many in Kashmir and beyond, Geelani was an enduring icon of defiance against India.
Farmer Mohammed Akbar said Geelani’s death filled him with remorse but also anger after he learned Geelani’s body was buried quietly by authorities who excluded the local people and his extended family from participating in the last rites.
“They are looking at ways to humiliate us,” Akbar said as he held his grandson in his arms. “They are even scared of dead Geelani.”
Pakistan was observing a day of official mourning and flags flew at half staff on orders by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
We in Pakistan salute his courageous struggle & remember his words: “Hum Pakistani hain aur Pakistan Humara hai”. The Pakistan flag will fly at half mast and we will observe a day of official mourning.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) September 1, 2021
Islamabad said the Indian government was “so afraid of Syed Geelani and what he stood for that they have now resorted to this inhuman act even after his passing away. This shows the degree of callousness on part of the Occupation Forces.”
According to Dawn, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi expressed grief on the demise of the late Kashmiri leader, saying that Geelani would always be remembered.
Qureshi said, “Every Pakistani, every Kashmiri, every freedom fighter, all those elements who have stood up for basic fundamental human rights will recognise what he (Geelani) stood for.”
He added that he was saddened by how the Indian forces had encircled Geelani’s house after his death and treated his family.
“They forced the family to bury him without a proper funeral,” he lamented. “Everybody knows that there would have been a huge, huge namaz-i-janaza (funeral) for him, and the Indian forces were too scared to even allow that.”
Kashmir has long been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan, which claim the region in full but rule only parts.
Freedom fighters have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the goal that the territory be united either under Pakistan’s rule or become an independent country.
New Delhi accuses Pakistan of sponsoring the campaign, a charge Pakistan denies. Tens of thousands of civilians, local people and government forces have been killed in the conflict.
Tensions were renewed in the region in 2019 after New Delhi stripped Kashmir’s semi-autonomy, scrapped its statehood and removed inherited protections on land and jobs. Authorities have since brought a slew of new laws, which many critics and locals likened to the beginning of settler colonialism.
