Detention of dozens of Jamaat-e-Islami leaders and members, amid sudden arrival by air of thousands of paramilitary soldiers Saturday gave rise to fears that the Government of India was readying itself for some major move in Kashmir.
Jamaat-e-Islami chief Dr Hameed Fayaz, party spokesman advocate Zahid Ali and dozens of other Jamaat functionaries and members were detained during night raids. Several others were held during the day.
JKLF chief Muhammad Yasin Malik was detained on Friday evening from his Maisuma residence and lodged in police station Kothibagh.
The detentions sparked a spontaneous shutdown in LalChowk, Hari Singh High Street, Residency Road, Moulana Azad Road and other adjoining areas. The shutdown was also observed in Downtown areas. Protesters clashed briefly with forces at Nowhatta.
A police official, requesting anonymity, said the detentions were “routine in the run up to elections”.
NORTHERN KASHMIR
At least 14 people, most of them affiliated with Jamaat, were detained last night in Kupwara district.
Accordingly to the family members of Ghulam Nabi Waseem, “Someone knocked at the door at around 2 a.m. My husband opened the door. The police took him along,” said Muneera, wife of GhulamNabi.
District president of JK Democratic Freedom Party for Kupwara, Peer Anaytullah, told Greater Kashmir on phone that he was detained at around 3 in the morning.
“I don’t understand why we were detained at that hour. Something is wrong,” Anaytullah said.
As many as 33 people associated with the Jamaat-e-Islami have been detained during nocturnal raids in Baramulla district—15 in Baramulla, 10 in Sopore and eight in Watergam area of Rafiabad. Some of the detainees are Dr Abdul Majid Wasil, Nazir Ahmad Khan, AdvQazi Syed Irfan, Abdul Majid Dar, Khazir Muhammad Khuroo and Abdul KhaliqRegoo. Khuroo’s family said the police raided their house at night and detained Khuroo even though they were mourning the death of his son-in-law who had passed away a few days ago.
SOUTHERN KASHMIR
Government forces last night detained more than a hundred Jamaat activists in southern Kashmir alone.
A source said that most of the basic members, associate members and affiliates of the group were among the detainees in all four districts of southern Kashmir, currently the epicenter of the resurgent militancy in Kashmir.
Even the kin of Jamaat activists and a few Jamaatsympathisers were rounded up.
More than 30 members were picked up in Anantnag district alone, with most of the detentions taking place in Dochnipora belt and Arwani villages of Bijbehra tehsil, a Jaamat stronghold.
“The army, CRPF special operation group (SOG) of police knocked at our door at around 2:15 a.m and took my son Mudasir along,” said Ghulam Hassan Mir of Sallar village of Dochnipora area in Pahalgam.
Mudasir, 35, a father of two kids aged six and six months is Ameer-i- Tehsil for Pahalgam. He is currently lodged in police station Srigufwara.
“He has been summoned by army many times to their camp and detained there for days together off late. They would take photos and do profiling on and off,” Mir said.
The families of other Jamaat activists Greater Kashmir spoke to also alleged that the army has been profiling them.
“Yesterday also soldiers took photos and later handed him over to police,” said the son of a Jamaat affiliate.
The arrested activists include Ameer-i- Zila Anantnag Abdul Rauf; Bakhtawar Ahmad and Abdul Salam from Dialgam village near Anantnag town; MuhamadYaqoob Dar of Sirhama; Muhammad Sultan Wani of Nowshera and SaifullahThoker of Waghama village of Bijbehara.
The son of Ameer tehsil Anantnag Gulzar Ahmad Bhat was also detained.
“His son Aqib Ahmad, aged 19, was picked up as his father had already gone into hiding to evade arrest,” a source said.
Similar reports poured in from Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam, and Tral.
At around 1 a.m, Mudasir Wani, a PhD. scholar from JNU, broke the news of the arrest of his 64-year-old father Muhammad Amin Wani, a Jamaat member, from his residence in Diver village of Tral, on social media.
“My 64-year-old father M Amin Wani has been picked up by SOG and Army in a nocturnal visit to our house. Around 12:30 a.m, they entered our lawn by climbing the walls and knocked at the windows of the house.”
“In this chilling cold night, they (forces) requested my father to accompany them to the camp. We pleaded that he will come to the army camp in the morning himself. The person in command argued ‘meribhinaukrihai (sic),’” reads his Facebook post.
“However, they suggested him to wear warm clothes and I added to take along medicine of diabetes, hypertension, heart, and thyroid. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find medicine for the heart. Then they left, before leaving my father hugged me. I accompanied them to the main gate of the house. They vanished in the pitch darkness of the night and I came back to hold my shivering mother,” the post reads.
Forces also raided the house of noted Jamiat-e-Talba activist Mujahid Shabir Falahi at Kamla area of Tral.
Since he was not home, the forces picked up his younger brother Naseer Ahmad last night.
On Saturday morning, Falahi himself went to police station Tral, where he was arrested and his brother was released.
Another Jamaat member Abdul Hamid Ahanger was detained from his house at BuchooTral.
A police officer said the arrested activists were lodged in nearest police stations.
In Shopian, the detainees include MuhamadMaqbool Malik of Killora; GhulamMuhamad Dar of ChekiSangdan; Adil Ahmad Kumar of Kandi and Tariq Amin, son of one of the founders of JamaatMaulvi Muhammad Amin, of Baba Mohala area of Shopian town.
“Tariq is not himself in any way affiliated with Jamaat though,” a local resident said.
CENTRAL KASHMIR
Several Jamaat members including its district head for Ganderbal Ghulam Mohammed War were detained by police during the nocturnal raids.
A source said War, his deputy Abdul Hamid Bhat were among more than a dozen Jamaat members arrested from different areas including Kangan, GundLar, Nagbal and Wakura in the district were taken into custody from their residencies, apart from some Hurriyat activists.
JAMAAT, MIRWAIZ CONDEMN CRACKDOWN
The JeI strongly condemned the arrest of its leaders, calling the crackdown a “well-designed conspiracy to create further uncertainty in the region”.
A statement issued by the JeI said those detained include GhulamQadir Lone (former secretary general), AbdurRouf (Ameer Zila Islamabad), Mudasir Ahmad (Ameer Tehsil Pahalgam), Abdul Salam (Dialgam), Bakhtawar Ahmad (Dialgam), Mohammad Hayat (Tral), Bilal Ahmad (Chadoora) and Ghulam Mohammad Dar (ChakSangran).
Jama’at smells “something fishy” in the detentions as, the statement said, they come at a time when the Article 35A, which grants special status to J&K, is scheduled for hearing within a few days”.
“It seems something is hatching behind the curtains. Any attempt to erode or tamper with Article 35(A) is unacceptable to the people of J&K,” the statement said.
Chairman Hurriyat Conference (M) Mirwaiz Umar Farooq strongly condemned the “arrest spree” across Kashmir. “Strongly condemn the nocturnal crackdown on Jamat-e-Islami leadership and cadres and the arrest of Yasin Malik. Such illegal and coercive measures against Kashmiris are futile and will not change realities on ground. Force and intimidation will only worsen the situation,” Mirwaiz posted on Twitter.
(With inputs from Altaf Baba, Irfan Malik, Muzamil Shah, Sheikh Nazir, Irfan Raina)