Protest brain Andrabi arrested

Srinagar, Aug. 28: Asiya Andrabi, the Kashmiri woman separatist leader thought to be one of the brains behind the ongoing unrest, was arrested today from her hideout on the outskirts of Srinagar.

Andrabi, who leads the separatist outfit Dukhtaran-e-Milat, was arrested during a raid.

Her deputy Fahmeeda was arrested with her, says PTI.

Along with Hurriyat hardliners Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Massarat Alam, Andrabi is considered one of the main faces of the present violent movement in the Valley.

Kashmir police chief Farooq Ahmad confirmed her arrest, but refused to give details.

Aasiya, 46, had gone underground along with Alam after Geelani’s arrest in June. The two then started announcing protest plans that have kept Kashmir shut for most of the past 11 weeks. Geelani was released a fortnight back, with the government hoping he may relax the protests.

Andrabi and Alam are said to favour continuation of protests without any break under their Quit Jammu and Kashmir programme.

Police sources said they carried out dozens of raids to arrest Andrabi. Alam continues to evade the force.

Andrabi recently rebuffed calls for taking schools out of the ambit of protests, saying people should “sacrifice” for the greater cause of aazadi.

A science graduate, she belongs to a respected and educated family. Her father was a doctor and her elder brother Inayat Ullah Anndrabi, also a separatist leader, was a professor in Kashmir University. He gave up his job to join the separatist movement.