Masarat Alam Bhat

Last updated

Masarat Alam Bhat
Chairman of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (Geelani faction)
Interim
Assumed office
7 September 2021 [1] [2]
Website www.thjk.org

Masarat Alam Bhat (born 1971) is a Kashmiri Islamist activist and a political separatist leader of Jammu and Kashmir. He is currently serving as the chairman of the Jammu Kashmir Muslim League, and also serves as the interim chairman of Geelani faction of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference.

Contents

Bhat was appointed as the interim chairman of the Geelani faction of Hurriyat after the death of Syed Ali Shah Geelani. He played a significant role in the 2010 Kashmir stone pelting rallies which broke out against the Machil fake encounter carried out by the Indian Army in Kashmir. Government has booked Masrat Alam in 27 criminal cases but in most of these he has either been exonerated or bailed out by the courts and was released after Mufti Mohammad Sayeed took over as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on 1 March 2015. [6]

Bhat was detained under the controversial Public Safety Act and was in March 2015 released which caused a major political controversy and dominated Indian Parliament Proceedings. [7] Amid speculations over his release Masrat Aalam said that no deal was made between him and the Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, saying "I spent more than four years in prison and during all these years I challenged the grounds of my 'illegal' detention". [8] [9] [10] [11] He has been jailed for 17 years and has around 27 cases against him. [12] [13]

Early life

Bhat was born in old-city Srinagar's Zaindar Mohalla in July 1971. [14] Like many youths of his generation, he was drawn to the armed rebellion against Indian state that began in 1989. [5] He was first arrested by the Border Security Force in October 1990 on charges of serving as a lieutenant to the then-prominent militant, Mushtaq Ahmad Bhat. He won a protracted legal battle in 1997 and began working at a cloth store owned by his grandfather, graduating the next year. From 1999, Bhat became increasingly active in the All Parties Hurriyat Conference(APHC) that cost him multiple stints in prison. He represented the Muslim League in APHC. Bhat found space under hardline Islamist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani's wing after the Hurriyat Conference split in 2003. [5]

Detention

In 2010, he was on the run after the Indian government announced a reward for his arrest for issuing protest calendars. Subsequently he was arrested later that year and remained in custody until early 2015.

Quotes

Following are the quotes by Masarat Alam on various occasions.

Criticism and Controversies

He said, "Our associates went to Badgam and Srinagar, we do not feel any kind of need. If disasters come, we do not need army and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). We think these are occupational forces so how would they bring relief? Last time, they did specific relief operation and rescued their own people. People here know that. [30] "
This statement has been criticised by media for being anti-Kashmiri and it may bring Kashmiri people in danger. [30]

Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office, said: "There's no compromise on any account, we are very clear on how such people have to be treated." [32]
Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju said, "Alam's arrest sends a strong message to the fringe groups. We will not tolerate any kind of anti-India activities." [33]
However, Lashkar-e-Taiba founder and mastermind of 2008 Mumbai Attacks Hafiz Saeed congratulated Masarat for his "anti-India act" and held a rally in support of Masarat in Lahore on 17 April 2015. [34] [35]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Masarat Alam is new chairman of Hurriyat Conference | Free Press Kashmir". freepresskashmir.news. 7 September 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  2. ↑ Bashaarat Masood (8 September 2021). "Masarat Alam succeeds Geelani as Hurriyat chairman". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  3. ↑ Bashaarat Mashood (5 September 2021). "Explained: Hurriyat at a crossroads". The Indian Express. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "Geelani heads breakaway Hurriyat group". The Tribune. 15 September 2003. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 Praveen Swami (19 August 2010). "Inside Kashmir's New Islamist movement". The Hindu. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  6. ↑ "Masarat Alam Bhat: 'A stone thrower since childhood". The Times of India . 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  7. ↑ "Mufti Mohammad Sayeed releases Muslim League leader Masarat Alam from jail, draws flak". Naseer Ganai. India Today. 8 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  8. ↑ "No deal between me and Mufti, Bukhari's revelations expose Omar's mindset, says Masarat Alam - Only Kashmir - Behind the News". Archived from the original on 20 February 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  9. ↑ "BJP leaders meet Kashmir chief over Masarat Alam release row". Business Standard India. Business Standard. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  10. ↑ "Hurriyat hardliner Masarat Alam's release rocks House: PM Modi makes his anger known". Indian Express. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  11. ↑ "How Masarat Alam Bhat transformed from a posh schoolboy to Kashmir's "most wanted" separatist". Quartez. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Masarat Alam Bhat spent 17 years in jail, has 27 FIRs against him". Dna. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  13. 1 2 3 "Masarat set to be ISI's poster boy in valley". The Sunday Guardian. 14 March 2015. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  14. ↑ "Sunday Story: Being Masarat Alam". The Indian Express. 15 March 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
  15. ↑ Bukhari, Fayaz (17 April 2015). "Violent clashes erupt in Kashmir over arrest of separatist leaders". Reuters. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  16. ↑ "Geelani calls for Valley-wide shutdown on Saturday - KashmirDispatch" . Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  17. ↑ "One Dead as Security Personnel Fire at Protesters in Narbal in Jammu and Kashmir". NDTV. 18 April 2015. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  18. ↑ "Bandh in Kashmir against Masarat Alam's arrest, one dead in police firing near Srinagar". Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  19. ↑ "Youth killed in firing in Budgam district of J&K; Mirwaiz placed under house arrest" . Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  20. ↑ Rafiq, Zahid (18 April 2015). "Boy killed in CRPF firing in Srinagar". The Hindu . Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  21. ↑ "Public Safety Act invoked against J&K separatist Masarat Alam, can be jailed for 2 years". 23 April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  22. 1 2 "Kashmiri Separatists Call for Shutdown on Saturday to Protest Masarat Alam's Detention Under Public Safety Act" . Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  23. ↑ "Kashmiri Separatist Masarat Alam Re-arrested in Jammu" . Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  24. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 August 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  25. ↑ "Masarat Alam: Man who could be the new leader". 31 August 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  26. ↑ "Did not wave Pak flag: Masarat Alam". 16 April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  27. ↑ "As Srinagar rages over Masarat Alam's arrest, Sayeed's plan for separatists seems doomed - Firstpost". 18 April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  28. ↑ "Masarat Alam Bhat: 'A stone thrower since childhood' - Times of India". The Times of India . 10 March 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  29. ↑ Qadri, Azhar (15 April 2015). "Geelani, Masarat hold anti- India rally". Tribuneindia News Service. The Tribune (Chandigarh). Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  30. 1 2 3 "Masarat Alam on Army's need in Kashmir floods-IndiaTV News". April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  31. ↑ "Kashmiri separatist leader Masarat Alam waves Pakistani flag to greet Syed Ali Geelani in Srinagar". IBNLive. 15 April 2015. Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  32. ↑ "Separatist leader Masarat Alam arrested". The Times of India. 17 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  33. ↑ "Waving of Pakistani flags: Separatist leader Masarat Alam Bhat arrested - Times of India". The Times of India . 17 April 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  34. ↑ "Lashkar-e-Toiba founder Hafeez Saeed holds rally in support of Masarat Alam". IBNLive. 17 April 2015. Archived from the original on 19 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  35. ↑ "Hafiz Saeed backs Masarat Alam openly, still no arrest". The Times of India. 17 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
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