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Deputy punches holes in Bhat's 'clean Jamaat' claims, upholds miltancy in Kashmir

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

The differences between the doves and the hawks in the pro-Pakistan Jamaat-e-Islami have become more pronounced following an interview granted by the party's chief to a local newspaper in Kashmir.

In the interview, Ghulam Mohammad Bhat, amir (chief) of the Jamaat, vehemently denied that any of his cadres were in any way connected with the separatist militancy in the state.

Bhat also denied that the Hizbul Mujahideen, most feared of the terrorist outfits in the Kashmir valley, is the armed wing of the Jamaat, as is popularly believed.

Bhat said this was a canard spread by anti-Jamaat politicians to get activists of his party eliminated by the security forces.

This was not Bhat's first attempt to distance himself and his organisation from the reign of terror in the valley. Just a week earlier, addressing the media in Srinagar, he had claimed that his is a "purely religious and political" party which should be allowed to function constitutionally and democratically. He had claimed to have the support of the grassroots workers of the party for his stand.

The briefing had followed attacks on Jamaat workers across the valley, in which 10 partymen had died. Bhat blames the state government for the killings.

At the media conference, he claimed that 2,000 Jamaat activists had been killed in the last 10 years.

But Bhat's efforts to whitewash his party's image suffered a setback when, ironically, his own chief representative in the separatist All Party Hurriyat Conference contradicted him.

Syed Ali Shah Geelani, chairman of the APHC, also heads the political affairs committee of the Jamaat-e-Islami.

Rebutting Bhat's claim, Geelani denied having been consulted before the Jamaat amir had made his statements. "I have always and at every level differed with Mr Bhat's policies," he said in a statement.

Geelani defended the militancy in the state, saying the youth took to the gun as peaceful methods to solve their problems had failed.

"Every organisation in Kashmir, including Jamaat, supported the armed struggle started by the youth," he admitted.

He said the Jamaat-e-Islami could not have remained aloof from the movement. "It does not comprise people living in the heavens," he said.

In his statement, Geelani repeated that the Kashmir dispute can only be resolved through tripartite talks involving India, Pakistan, and the representatives of Kashmir.

He said the APHC had taken a serious note of Bhat's statements and its executive had discussed the issue with the Jamaat's leadership.

Political analysts describe the gulf in the Jamaat as a major development. They believe it can have far-reaching consequences on the political scene in the troubled state.

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