Hurriyat leader put under house arrest ahead of PM Narendra Modi visit

SRINAGAR: Separatist Hurriyat Conference leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was today placed under house arrest while several others were taken into preventive custody to foil their plan of holding a rally parallel to that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Saturday.

Farooq was placed under house arrest this morning, police officials said.

They said second rung leaders like Abdul Manan Bukhari of Hurriyat and Noor Mohammad Kalwal of JKLF were taken into preventive custody.

Altogether 100 separatist leaders and activists have been taken into preventive custody to ensure that the Prime Minister's public rally on November 7 passes off without any problems.

Hardline Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has called for a parallel rally on November 7. Geelani's call has been backed by almost all separatist groups of the valley.

Modi will be visiting Kashmir for a day, during which he will address a rally at Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium.