Kashmiri Separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani in a surprise move has decided against attending an Eid Milan which is to be hosted by the Pakistan High Commission on July 21. According to an Indian TV channel, Geelani rejected the invitation on the grounds that the Kashmir issue was "ignored" in the joint statement between India and Pakistan after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Indian premier Modi held their meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Ufa, Russia on July 10.
The Hurriyat Conference leader while speaking to a news agency said he would register his protest by not attending the Eid Milan because the two leaders did not discuss Kashmir during their meeting in Ufa. Rising Kashmir, a Srinagar based daily quoted a news agency as saying that Geelani made the announcement through a statement: "Hurriyat conference has decided not to attend the Eid Milan at Pak High Commission New Delhi," a Hurriyat (G) statement said, adding "this is in protest against not mentioning 'Kashmir' in Ufa Russia meeting between PMs of India and Pakistan."