Sopur, Apr 21: Veteran pro-freedom leader and Hurriyat Conference (G) Chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani Wednesday said the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was following the footsteps of his father and grandfather “in tyrannizing Kashmiris.”
“Whether it was the reign of Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah or Farooq Abdullah, they killed Kashmiris and were at the forefront of crushing the freedom struggle. Omar Abdullah is no different from them and he is following the footsteps of his grandfather and father in crushing Kashmiris. Sheikh dynasty has even gone past the Dogra regime in brutalization,” he said while addressing mourners at Jamia Qadeem Sopur. Geelani visited Sopur town to meet the family of teenager Zubair Ahmed, who was allegedly drowned to death by the forces last week.
He said the troopers and SOG men had unleashed a reign of terror in nook and corner of the state. “The unbridled forces are killing our youth and implicating them in false cases. Hundreds of our youth are rotting in jails,” he said.
Terming the eight percent reservation for Schedule Castes in recently passed inter-district recruitment bill as a conspiracy against Kashmiri Muslims, he said this move was aimed at reducing 
Kashmir’s Muslim majority into a minority by inducing demographic changes. “Due to the passage of the bill, Muslims would be reduced to minority,” he alleged.
He said that government cannot crush the freedom movement by keeping pro-freedom leaders under continuous detention.
Referring to Zubair’s father, he said, “I salute this father who told me that he is happy that his both sons were killed for freedom struggle and had no regret of losing them.”

Lastupdate on : Wed, 21 Apr 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Wed, 21 Apr 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Thu, 22 Apr 2010 00:00:00 IST