In the dock

Will Geelani’s arrest embolden the moderates to speak up?

Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has been arrested not for his political opinions but for his extra-political dealings. His lifestyle was at variance with his humble means. He had a fleet of vehicles in his garage, immovable assets at various places and many people on his payroll. The police have accused him of being a conduit for the Hizbul Mujahideen. Geelani is notorious for his pro-Pakistan stance and it is, therefore, no surprise that the Pakistan government has criticised India for arresting him.

Needless to say, the criticism is unlikely to bring any sympathy for the Hurriyat leader. In fact, it is an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of the country.

All the same, it is nobody’s contention that the accusations of the police are strong enough to stand judicial scrutiny. In fact, in many such cases in the past, the police have failed to measure up to the exacting standards of the judicial system.

Geelani and his two sons-in-law have been arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Pota) and the Public Safety Act. But even a draconian law like Pota has safety clauses that enable the accused to prove their innocence. Having said this, questions will be asked whether the police are skating on thin ice when they arrested one of Geelani’s sons-in-law, a Delhi-based journalist. Whether the evidence the police have gathered against him — finding a few Pakistani visa forms in his house and some details of the army deployment in his laptop computer — are strong enough to indict him is a matter of speculation.

One can only hope the police have done their homework before they swooped down on the Geelani household.

As is its wont, the Hurriyat has called for a bandh on Tuesday in protest against the arrest. But what is of greater concern is how the development will affect the election process in the state, which the government is keen to initiate at the earliest.

A hardliner, Geelani has been opposing the elections. His plea was that the Hurriyat’s participation would undermine the interests of the Kashmiri struggle. But there are many within the Hurriyat who do not subscribe to such a viewpoint and among them was the slain leader, Abdul Gani Lone.

But they are not able to express their opinion for fear of the hardliners who have gun-wielding supporters from within and without the country at their beck and call. It is significant that Lone’s son had openly accused Geelani of masterminding his assassination, only to withdraw that accusation a day later.

The success of the government’s Kashmir policy depends on how best it is able to instill confidence among those who want an early end to the cult of violence in the state to come out in the open and say so.