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Mukhtar Ahmed Waza (born 1966) is a Kashmiri separatist leader and chairperson of the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples League, a banned political faction by the government of India. He is also an executive council member of All Parties Hurriyat Conference
Waza was born in business family of Jammu and Kashmir, India on 2 June 1966. He did his early schooling at Government Middle School Sarnal, Anantnag. However, he could not complete his studies due to his affiliation with Peoples league for which he was jailed at the age of 16.[ citation needed ]
Waza began his political career in 1980 at the age of 14, leading a peaceful demonstration in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. His activism resulted in his arrest and subsequent detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978 (PAS) for a period of three years. In 1986, he was again detained for one year under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA). He, along with the JKPL activists, were arrested on several occasions, including in March 1992. [1] [2] After the death of Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Waza became the chairman of Peoples League and executive member of All Parties Hurriyat Conference and was re-elected as chairman in 2013. [3] [4]