Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Aug 23: Police today foiled the convention of a separatist group headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani and used force to disperse his supporters in Hyderpora area of district Budgam.
Tehreek-e-Hurriyat (TeH), which is being headed by Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman, Geelani, had planned to organize party’s convention at Hyderpora.
However, the police didn’t allow them to hold the convention and detained several of their leaders and activists including General Secretary Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai.
The TeH leaders and supporters started to assemble and proceed towards the venue at Rehmatabad in Hyderpora along Airport Road this morning, police and paramilitary personal deployed there resorted to cane charge and teargas to disperse them. Police also used water cannon against the Hurriyat activists.
A police officer told Excelsior that the separatist activists resorted to stone-pelting on security forces. Sources said 15 supporters of Geelani were injured while 9 were detained. Besides, they said, five cops were also injured. Due to stand-off between the two sides, the vehicular traffic on the otherwise busy Airport Road came to halt.
A Hurriyat spokesman, meanwhile, said that the police action against TeH activists was “unwarranted”. “The convention was not a public meeting but only party members of the TeH were supposed to participate in it,” he said.
The spokesman said that the Superintendent of Police (SP) Budgam along with his subordinates had met Geelani on Friday morning and had enquired about the proposed programme. He said that the group had conveyed to police that it is not a public meeting.
“However, the police telephoned us on Saturday evening and told us to seek permission from Deputy Commissioner Budgam for the convention,” he said. The Hurriyat, however, had not sought any permission from DC. All the detained persons, however, were later released by police.
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