Mirwaiz Umar Farooq returns NIA headquarters for questioning in alleged terror funding case

Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Tuesday appeared before the National Investigation Agency for the second consecutive day for questioning in connection with a case related to funding of terror groups and separatist organisations in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said. The NIA had summoned him for questioning twice in the past but he had not complied with the orders citing security concerns. Mirwaiz, who is one of the religious heads of Muslims in the Kashmir Valley, had written to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), saying he had no knowledge of the case mentioned by the agency in its summon served on him.

The NIA has also summoned Naseem Geelani, son of separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani, on Tuesday but it was not immediately clear whether he was appearing before the agency or not.

Earlier, he had been served a notice for appearing before the agency on March 11 but the lawyer of the Mirwaiz informed the NIA, through a four-page letter, that his client was willing to cooperate as he could not travel in view of the "conditions of hostility".

"Under the prevailing conditions of hostility wherein there is a threat to the personal safety of my client, it becomes unwise for my client to travel to Delhi," counsel for the Mirwaiz, Aijaz Ahmad Dhar, had said.

He had also maintained that his client is not acquainted with the subject matter of the FIR referred to in the NIA's notice.

The NIA is investigating a case related to funding of terror and separatist organisations in Kashmir through hawala channels. The agency last month carried out a series of raids on separatists, including the Mirwaiz.

The NIA had said that letterheads of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jamat-ud-Dawa, Hizbul Mujahideen and other organisations are among various "significant evidences" that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) says are enough to book top separatist leaders, including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.

The NIA had also questioned two maternal uncles of the Mirwaiz - Maulvi Manzoor and Maulvi Shafat - and his close aides last year. Both Manzoor and Shafat are retired senior government officers. Earlier, an NIA team, accompanied by police and CRPF personnel, searched residences of some of the separatist leaders, including the Mirwaiz and Ashraf Sehrai, the chairman of the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat. Barring the Mirwaiz and Sehrai, all other leaders have been jailed.