Moderate Hurriyat Leaders Convene First Meeting Since Article 370 Revocation

Srinagar, Oct 23: For the first time since the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in August 2019, top leaders of the moderate Hurriyat Conference met in Srinagar on Tuesday. The meeting was attended by Hurriyat Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, along with senior leaders Prof. Abdul Gani Bhat, Bilal Lone, and Molvi Masroor Abbas Ansari.Mirwaiz, who had been under house arrest for much of the last five years, shared the news on X, expressing his gratitude for the reunion. “Alhumdulilah! After more than five years, I got a chance to be together with my dear colleagues,” he wrote, describing the meeting as an emotional experience, while also remembering colleagues who remain in jail.The meeting took place at Mirwaiz’s residence and is seen as significant, given the central government’s hardline approach toward separatists over the past five years. Despite Mirwaiz’s frequent detention, which he has challenged in the High Court, this gathering marks a notable development in Kashmir’s political landscape.Although the meeting occurred soon after Omar Abdullah’s government took office in Jammu and Kashmir, it is believed that the regional administration had no direct role in facilitating it, as law and order remain under the purview of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.Observers remain skeptical that the BJP-led central government will soften its stance on separatist leaders, despite this meeting.