The decision of the Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah to allow the Hurriyat rally today has been widely hailed as a bold step of the government to repose faith in the masses. Several persons described Chief Minister’s olive branch as an honest attempt to reach out to the separatists which, they said, deserves to be positively reciprocated by the Hurriyat leadership.
The Chief Minister had yesterday instructed the administration to allow the rally even as the major concern of the government was security as such rallies had been targeted in the past.
Ever since the assassination of Mirwaiz Maulvi Farooq on May 21, 1991, taking out of rally to Eidgah has been a source of friction between the administration and separatists. On the same day in 2002, unidentified gunmen had killed Hurriyat leader Abdul Gani Lone at Eidgah, after which the rally on May 21 each year has ended in acrimony.
Arshad Ahmad, a businessman, said the Chief Minister has avoided the confrontation which Hurriyat wanted to rake up on the rally issue. “Omar is a realist. By allowing the rally he has won many hearts”, he said, adding that even though he had to close his shop, he was confident that winds of change were blowing faster to clear the mist on Kashmir.
This is not for the first time Omar Abdullah has lifted restrictions on the movement of people. Immediately after taking over as Chief Minister, he had issued instructions to avoid frisking of people and ease restrictions near Bakshi Stadium in the run up to the Republic Day function on January 26. The restrictions on the Republic day this year were the minimal and people felt a positive change.
The appreciation for the Chief Minister’s decision is wide and across the board. Dr. Mohammad Aslam, a surgeon by profession, said that the Chief Minister has displayed political maturity and it will definitely increase his stature. He said Mr. Omar Abdullah is matching words with deeds which is going to raise his stock as a politician, given the fact that he is still very young and has to go a long way.
The Chief Minister had yesterday instructed the administration to allow the rally even as the major concern of the government was security as such rallies had been targeted in the past.
Ever since the assassination of Mirwaiz Maulvi Farooq on May 21, 1991, taking out of rally to Eidgah has been a source of friction between the administration and separatists. On the same day in 2002, unidentified gunmen had killed Hurriyat leader Abdul Gani Lone at Eidgah, after which the rally on May 21 each year has ended in acrimony.
Arshad Ahmad, a businessman, said the Chief Minister has avoided the confrontation which Hurriyat wanted to rake up on the rally issue. “Omar is a realist. By allowing the rally he has won many hearts”, he said, adding that even though he had to close his shop, he was confident that winds of change were blowing faster to clear the mist on Kashmir.
This is not for the first time Omar Abdullah has lifted restrictions on the movement of people. Immediately after taking over as Chief Minister, he had issued instructions to avoid frisking of people and ease restrictions near Bakshi Stadium in the run up to the Republic Day function on January 26. The restrictions on the Republic day this year were the minimal and people felt a positive change.
The appreciation for the Chief Minister’s decision is wide and across the board. Dr. Mohammad Aslam, a surgeon by profession, said that the Chief Minister has displayed political maturity and it will definitely increase his stature. He said Mr. Omar Abdullah is matching words with deeds which is going to raise his stock as a politician, given the fact that he is still very young and has to go a long way.
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