Internal fissures are growing in the banned Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) outfit in Jammu and Kashmir as a group headed by old guard stalwart Ghulam Mohammed Bhat is trying to capture the organisation, according to officials here.
Bhat, once responsible for marginalising hardliners such as Syed Ali Shah Geelani, is once again coming forward with the support of 35 members of the influential 40-member ‘Shoora’ (advisory council) of the organisation.
The move is being interpreted by analysts as a strategic effort by the proscribed outfit, which is operating covertly, to enter into serious negotiations with the government to lift the five-year ban, which was recently extended.
The entry of Bhat in the scene has been disturbing for vested interests across the border, as he has in the past also distanced the Jamaat from the banned terror group Hizbul Mujahideen, an outfit used by Pakistan’s ISI to project that terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir is indigenous.
The government accuses the Jamaat of engaging in activities against “the security, integrity, and sovereignty of the nation” and of having ties to militant groups and separatist activities.
Bhat came into the limelight for the first time in 1999 when, as the head of JeI, he distanced the organisation officially from terrorism.
This move, however, created a deep divide in the organisation, resulting in the emergence of Tehreek-i-Hurriyat (TeH) in 2003 by hardliners such as Syed Ali Geelani and Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai who quit the JeI.
The present internal struggle is understood to have started when a group headed by Ghulam Qadir Wani and Ghulam Qadir War made the decision to contest the parliamentary elections on the Justice and Development Front (JDF) ticket.
After their loss, pressure was brought upon them to step down, and most of the Shoora opposed them.
This led to Bhat, along with Mohammed Abdullah Wani and Sheikh Hasan, publicly distancing themselves from the JDF faction and forming an interim setup with the support of the majority of the Shoora, dismissing the ten district chiefs who had supported the Wani-led faction.
The faction has established a new centre of power within the proscribed organisation, which is eager to negotiate with authoritie
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