Geelani rejects Truth & Reconciliation Commission

Hard-line Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Monday rejected the Truth and Reconciliation Commission proposed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and demanded a United Nations-appointed factfinding mission to probe the unmarked graves in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We vehemently reject the Truth and Reconciliation Commission as we do not expect justice from the system which is perpetuating human rights violations in the state," Geelani, who is under house arrest, told reporters at his Hyderpora residence.

Omar had reiterated his suggestion for setting up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission after the investigative wing of the State Human Rights Commission admitted the existence of over 2,700 unmarked graves at 38 sites in north Kashmir.

The Hurriyat leader said none of the victims of human rights violations in the state has got justice from the system "which is based on fraud and cheating".

Asked about the demand for an Income Tax probe against him made by Union Minister Farooq Abdullah, Geelani said, "One should laugh at his comments and sometimes cry too. A man who does not know what he is talking about should not be taken seriously."

Abdullah on Sunday sought a probe into the money allegedly collected by Geelani and other separatists at the time of reconstruction of the Chrar-e-Sharief shrine in 1995 and last summer's unrest.