Srinagar, July 10: The National Investigation Agency filed a chargesheet against six senior leaders of the Hurriyat Conference in connection with a thirty-year-old case involving mob violence, attacks on police personnel, and criminal conspiracy in Srinagar. The chargesheet was submitted before the NIA Special Court in Jammu, following the agency’s takeover of the case earlier this year. The legal action stems from an incident on July 17, 1996, during the funeral procession of a slain militant, where massive public disorder erupted.
Among those named in the investigative document are Shabir Ahmad Shah, Javid Ahmad Mir, and Shakeel Ahmad Bakshi, alongside three deceased leaders whose proceedings have naturally closed. The agency stated that proceedings against Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Abdul Ganie Lone, and Mohd. Yaqoob Wakeel have abated due to their deaths during the course of the proceedings. Despite their passing, the anti-terror agency asserted that the document still details their alleged roles in the unlawful assembly based on evidence gathered during the probe.
The federal agency maintained that the political figures intentionally used the public gathering to instigate an assault against local security forces. According to the investigation, the six Hurriyat leaders had allegedly led an unlawful assembly during the funeral procession and incited large-scale violence against police personnel at Naaz Crossing in Srinagar. The probe further asserted that armed militants mingled with the crowd, opening fire on law enforcement, injuring multiple officers, and damaging government vehicles through intense stone-pelting.
The central government ordered the federal probe team to take over the investigation from the local Jammu and Kashmir Police in April 2026. Investigators affirmed that the incident was not a spontaneous outburst but rather a calculated political maneuver. The agency further alleged that armed militants had mingled with the procession and opened indiscriminate fire at police personnel, while the accused delivered inflammatory speeches and raised secessionist slogans. The accused now face charges under the Ranbir Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, with the agency confirming that further investigation into the matter remains underway.
