The All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) Chairman, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, ruled out any possibility of rapprochement with the embittered factions of the erstwhile 26 party conglomerate saying if the parties owing allegiance to him budge over the issue he would go it alone "in the larger interest of the movement for right to self-determination."
Speaking at a book-release function organised by Muslim League to release Engineer Abdul Majid Mattu's latest book on Kashmir titled Prolonged Agony: Kashmir Saga, at a hotel here.
Geelani reiterated that the Hurriyat Conference would not accept any thing short of implementation of UN resolutions or tripartite talks supervised by UN or any friendly country having influence over both India and Pakistan.
No body can turn a blind eye to the historical perspective of Kashmir dispute save those who've mortgaged their intellect and wisdom for petty interests," Geelani said adding the vexed issue could be understood in the back drop of two-nation theory that formed the basis of division of British India.
Enumerating the agonies, Kashmiris have had since 1947 at the hands of oppressive regimes, Geelani maintained that the movement for right to self-determination had reached a crucial stage where "we are asked to be content on autonomy and other sops," but, he said, from LoC and Rawalpindi Road to the transfer of power, Hurriyat Conference did not acknowledge any thing as a solution to the 56 year old dispute between India and Pakistan.
Taking exception to some of the assertions A.M. Mattu had made while presenting a resume of his book, Geelani sought an intellectual debate over the dynamics of options for the permanent resolution of Kashmir issue.
"If the Indians are worried about the fate of Hindu and Sikh minorities in the event of the State's accession to Pakistan, they should be equally concerned about the Muslims, who constitute 85 percent of the total State population, while advocating the state's total merger with the Indian Union," he asserted adding while the myth of Indian secularism stands exploded after Babri mosque demolition.
Terming the on going efforts for reconciliation among the divided factions of Hurriyat Conference "a total distraction" 75-year-old Geelani emphasised that the Hurriyat underwent a 'cleansing process' rather than division and urged the people in general and the intelligentsia in particular to exhibit a realistic approach while attaching different 'tags' to the leaders.
"Although I'm an Islamist by faith and practice, yet I won't fix a religious
scale to judge the credibility of a pro-movement leader. As there could be socialists, secularists and leaders from other ideologies but, the moot point should be the attitude one reflects towards the movement," Geelani pointed out and said that in 2002 the leadership committed a breach of trust by not actively campaigning for the boycott of elections "Even one of the constituents fought elections through proxy and carved a place for itself in the government yet no action was taken," he alluded to People's Conference.
"I hold my stand as true as I hold the faith on God, his Messenger (SAW) and the divine book, Qur'an. Even if those who elected me as Chairman on September 15, after a no confidence motion against the expelled leadership, withdraw their support over the issue. I'd prefer going it alone rather than shaking hands with the people trapped in fear, allurement and self-indulgence," Geelani vowed in his 50-minute exuberant speech.
According to the spokesman of Muslim League, leaders from the Ansari group were also invited to the occasion, However, no one turned up. The DFP Chief, Shabir Shah, Salim Geelani, Tehreek-e-Hurriyat President General Musa and JKLF veteran Noor Muhammad Kalwal attended the function.