Shabir’s daughter and Geelani’s grandchildren publicly declare their loyalty to India

Daughter Sama Shabir, a jailed separatist, and granddaughter Ruwa Shah, a dead Pakistani follower of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, have both vowed to uphold the sovereignty of the Union of India and distanced themselves from the separatist philosophy.

The same public announcements that appeared in neighborhood publications disassociated themselves from separatist ideology. Ruwa Shah, the daughter of Altaf Ahmad Shah, also known as Altaf Fantoosh, the son-in-law of Geelani, publicly distanced herself from the Hurriyat Conference group that her late grandpa had created. She said that she had no sympathy or inclination towards the ideologies of the Hurriyat Conference. “I am a loyal citizen of India not affiliated with any organisation or association which has an agenda against the Union of India and I owe allegiance to the Constitution of my country (India),” Shah said in the notification. After a protracted illness, her father, who was also imprisoned for allegedly aiding terrorism, passed away last year.

Sama Shabir, 23, clearly disassociated herself from the outlawed separatist group her father, who is incarcerated in Tihar Jail on charges of money laundering and financing terrorism, founded in an additional public statement that was printed in a local newspaper on Thursday. Sama Shabir said, “I am not associated with the DFP or its ideology in any way,” announcing that anybody who linked her to the separatist organisation without permission would face legal repercussions.

The Enforcement Directorate detained Shabir Ahmad Shah, 70, in 2017 on suspicion of money laundering operations related to funding of terrorism. The National Investigation Agency eventually filed accusations against him for allegedly funding terrorism. Sama was called by the ED in 2019 about the matter, however she did not show up at the time since she was studying law in the United Kingdom.

The BJP, however, has called these public announcements a “massive change” that J&K has experienced after Article 370 was repealed. “This open confession directly from those who were known for separatist agenda and ideology is an eye opener for those who say what has changed in J&K post-Article 370 roll back,” said Altaf Thakur, a senior BJP politician and the party’s J&K spokesperson. This, he said, was a smack in the face to those who were still pushing Pakistan’s agenda.