In its upcoming session, the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly will pay tribute to several former legislators and dignitaries who passed away since the last assembly session in 2018. Among those to be remembered on Tuesday is the prominent Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, along with other notable figures such as former President Pranab Mukherjee, former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, former Governor Jagmohan Malhotra, and BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana.
The assembly speaker will deliver obituary references, honoring these individuals’ contributions in public service. Geelani, who passed away in 2021, was a significant figure in Kashmir’s political landscape, having served as an elected member of the legislative assembly three times, representing Sopore in 1972, 1977, and 1987.
Geelani’s early political career saw him participate actively in Jammu and Kashmir’s electoral process. However, the rigging controversy surrounding the 1987 assembly elections marked a pivotal turning point for him. Following the election, Geelani joined the separatist movement, distancing himself from electoral politics, a stance he maintained until his death. The contentious 1987 election, which witnessed widespread accusations of voter manipulation, sowed deep political discontent in the region. This was the last election in which Syed Salahuddin, another prominent figure who later led the militant group Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, participated before he crossed the Line of Control and assumed a leadership role in insurgency.
The 1987 election remains controversial and is often cited as one of the triggers that led to the rise of militancy in Kashmir. Political alliances at the time saw the Congress and the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), led by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah, respectively, secure 66 out of 76 seats. The Muslim United Front (MUF), an alliance of Islamist parties that included candidates like Salahuddin, faced heavy losses amid accusations of widespread election fraud. Despite Congress winning all of its 26 contested seats and the JKNC securing 40 out of 46 seats, the alleged vote-rigging is believed to have disenfranchised a significant segment of the Kashmiri population.
Further tensions in the Valley escalated following Governor Jagmohan Malhotra’s dismissal of Ghulam Mohammad Shah’s government in 1986, which many Kashmiris viewed as an attack on the region’s Muslim-majority identity. The political aftermath and unaddressed grievances from this period are seen as key contributors to the conflict that unfolded in the late 1980s, compounded by external influences, including intervention from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
A report presented to the United States Congress in 2022 acknowledged the lasting impact of the 1987 election, noting that the perception of disenfranchisement among Kashmiri Muslims was one factor behind the enduring conflict in the region.
As the assembly session proceeds, the inclusion of Geelani among those to be honored signals recognition of his role as a former legislator, despite his later involvement in the separatist movement.
(Inputs from PTI and others)
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