Police is ‘mafia,’ SHOs ‘jagirdars’: Geelani

Srinagar: Accusing the Jammu and Kashmir Police of waging a “war” against the local population, Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman, Syed Ali Shah Geelani Thursday said the department had turned into a “mafia”.

“Instead of being the protectors of people’s lives and properties, the police department has been turned into a mafia, with the SHOs of police stations behaving like those jagirdars who consider exploiting the poor peasants their birth right. No civilian can live with his head held high and if anyone dares to do so he is slapped with the draconian Public Safety Act and sent to jail,” Geelani said in a statement issued here to.

Geelani said besides arresting the young and the old, the police was also “extorting” hefty sums from parents of youth for their release. “We have a complete list of such police officers who have turned the arrest and release of youth into a profitable business, which would be released to the public at a proper time. These officers should think that they are part of our society and such behavior may dent their social life,” Geelani said.

The Hurriyat (G) chairman also condemned the arrest and detention of party leaders Mohammad Rafiq Ganai and Mir Hafizullah , saying the unabated arrests and continued detention of political leaders had exposed the Indian leadership’s “hollow” claims of starting a political process in Kashmir.

Meanwhile, reiterating his call for Eidgah chalo tomorrow, urging people to carry bricks for constructing a “resistance wall” in the memory of martyrs.

“Conscientious nations never forget their martyrs. To remember the people who gave their lives for us, such ‘resistance walls’ will be raised at every martyrs graveyard in Kashmir. And to begin this process; people must march towards Eidgah tomorrow with a brick in their hand so that this resistance wall becomes a source of history for our coming generations,” Geelani said in a statement issued here.