SRINAGAR, Sept 28: Reacting to chief minister Omar Abdullah for daring militants to attack him, hardline separatist leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Thursday hit back saying the challenge only “demonstrated his frustrations”.
“There is no need to attack Omar Abdullah. If he shuns the support of the crutches of police and other armed forces, he will automatically have a political death and he will be forgotten forever,” the octogenarian leader said.
In a strong-worded statement, the chairman of the hardliner Hurriyat conference also took at Abdullah who had accused separatists of subverting the panchayat system in the state.
“His masters in New Delhi are exploiting these polls in every international conference and meeting and are projecting the participation of people in panchayat polls as their willingness to live with India,” Geelani said.
“Government is using panches and sarpanches as scapegoats. We will continue our effort to make them understand the reality that they are being exploited, that the government is creating propaganda in the name of panchayat members for its own political interest.”
The separatist leader also dared Abdullah to fight him and his colleagues in a “democratic atmosphere”.
Geelani also alleged that militancy in the region, where a 23-year-old armed conflict is waning, is being fuelled by the oppressive methods of the government to counter the “people’s movement”.
He said some of the people have taken to “some other ways” as they were denied the opportunity to put forward their views “democratically and independently”.
“Their undemocratic and oppressive methods to crush the people’s movement between 2008 and 2010 has created a choked political environment, leading to a negative situation,” he added.
