Hurriyat criticises Modi government over NIA 'crackdown'

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India] June 3 (ANI): The Hurriyat on Saturday criticised Narendra Modi led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government over the National Investigation Agency (NIA) crackdown against its leaders. The Hurriyat's criticism of the Modi government comes after the NIA, in a major crackdown on terror funding, conducted raids at Kashmiri separatist leaders' residences and offices today in Kashmir, Delhi and Haryana. Minister of State Home Hansraj Ahir also today said that the action against the separatism in Kashmir won't stop till the separatists are taught real meaning of 'Azadi'. Hurriyat leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, in a joint statement, alleged that the NIA has been given the task "just to drag and involve Hurriyat leadership into fabricated cases to pressurise the leadership". "All these state sponsored tactics won't deter us from pursuing our mission, nor these coercions, suppressive and aggressive measures will make us to surrender," said the statement. The Hurriyat alleged that "India has simultaneously launched a propaganda war to discredit leadership and (Kashmiri) people's struggle for which tremendous sacrifices have been made". The Hurriyat leadership said that "it is their (centre's) frustration and we will continue to pursue our cause and won't budge in front of such dogmatic elements". The Hurriyat leadership warned Delhi of dire consequences "if all these harassing measures are not stopped forthwith and said that if these unnecessary raids are not stopped, people will take to streets and resent these arbitrary measures with their full might and will". However, the Hurriyat leadership is in a soup after a sting operation showed a Hurriyat leader Naeem Khan confessing receiving funds from Pakistan to spread unrest and separatism in Kashmir. After the expose, the Hurriyat suspended Naeem Khan. However, it didn't end the Hurriyat's woes as the NIA started its probe on May 20. In today's raids, the NIA seized at least Rs. 1.5 crore cash, and incriminating documents in the raids conducted at the locations related to the separatist leaders. The letterheads of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hijbul Mujahideen (HM), pen-drives, laptops were also seized from the locations. Some of the separatists' names whose locations were today raided are Hurriyat leaders Raja Kalwal and Naeem Khan. (ANI)