Speakers at a seminar term Syed Ali Geelani epoch-making leader of Kashmir

MUZAFFARABAD, September 2: While addressing a seminar organized by the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir to mark the first death anniversary of late Kashmiri leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, speakers described the late freedom fighter as a real hero of the Kashmir freedom movement for his undaunted resistance against the Indian tyranny all through his life.

They said that Syed Ali Shah Geelani fought throughout his life to free the Kashmiri people from Indian subjugation and his unprecedented struggle and spirit of resistance will continue to inspire the coming generations of Kashmiris.

Speaking at the seminar, Prof Dr. Mohammad Qayyum Khan, Director of Finance and the senior professor of the University said that Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who entered the politics of Kashmir in the 1950s, waged a peaceful political struggle for 37 years for the settlement of the Kashmir issue, but ultimately he realized that India, the claimant of the world’s largest democracy will not grant Kashmiris their inalienable right to self-determination through democratic means.

Geelani who was elected three times as a member of the Occupied Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly quit parliamentary politics in the late 80s and dedicated himself to organizing the freedom movement within Occupied Kashmir and at the international level to expose the real face of India, Dr. Qayyum added.

Despite all the difficulties, sufferings, and plights, Syed Ali Geelani demonstrated unprecedented determination and courage and never compromised on his principled stand, Dr. Qayyum said.

“He was a true Pakistani who believed in attaching the political destiny of Kashmiris with Pakistan after freedom from India and he remained committed to this ideology till the last breath of his life,” he asserted.

Addressing the seminar, Associate Dean Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences Dr. Bashirur Rahman Kanth said that Syed Ali Geelani was a shining star of Kashmir who infused a new spirit in the hearts of the Kashmiri youth to fight for their freedom and liberty.

Dr. Kanth said that Syed Ali Geelani coined the slogan “We are Pakistanis and Pakistan is ours” under the bayonets of the Indian army, proving that he was a true Pakistani than the Pakistanis themselves.

In his address, the Registrar of the university, Sardar Zafar Iqbal said that Syed Ali Geelani was two years old when 22 Muslims were martyred as a result of the Dogra army’s attack on the protesting Kashmiris in front of the Srinagar Central Jail in 1931. After this incident, Syed Ali Geelani and the freedom movement of Kashmir grew together.

He went on to say that the success of the freedom movement remained the sole objective of Syed Ali Geelani’s life-long struggle despite spending a large part of his life in jails and concentration cells where he was subjected to physical and mental torture. Despite all cruelties and tyranny he never compromised on the demand for self-determination for his enslaved people, Zafar added.

The seminar was also addressed by Director Students’ Affair UAJK, Dr. Imtiaz Awan, Head of the Department of Art & Design, Dr. Rukhsana Said Khan, Head of Institute of Kashmir Studies, Dr. Samaira, Zulqarnain Kazmi, and Moulana Shakeel Ahmed.