Separatist leader Yasin Malik informed a UAPA tribunal that he has abandoned armed conflict and now follows the “Gandhian way of resistance.” He claimed to be advocating for a peaceful, “united, independent Kashmir.” Malik emphasized his shift from militancy to non-violence during the tribunal proceedings. His statement reflects a significant change in his approach to the Kashmir issue.
Separatist leader Yasin Malik informed a tribunal under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) that he renounced armed struggle in 1994 and has since embraced non-violence. Malik, the founder of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front-Yasin (JKLF-Y), declared in his affidavit that he now follows the “Gandhian way of resistance.”
As the tribunal reviewed the ban on JKLF-Y, which led armed militancy in the Kashmir Valley during the 1990s, Malik stated,
“I gave up arms, I’m a Gandhian now,”
Yasin Malik explained that his decision to renounce violence in 1994 intended to pursue a “united, independent Kashmir” through peaceful means.
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However, the UAPA tribunal, in its recent order published in the official gazette, declared JKLF-Y an “unlawful organisation” for the next five years under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. The ruling highlighted the outfit’s connections with key political and government figures since 1994 and raised doubts about its legitimacy.
Malik, currently serving a life sentence in Tihar Jail after being convicted in a terror funding case, is also the prime accused in the 1990 killing of four Indian Air Force personnel in Rawalpora, Srinagar. Earlier this year, witnesses identified him as the main shooter in the case.
In addition to these charges, Malik sentenced to life imprisonment in May 2022 for a terror financing case investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
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In his affidavit, Malik claimed that during the early 1990s, various state officials assured him that the Kashmir issue would be resolved through “meaningful dialogue.” He stated that he promised that if he initiated a unilateral ceasefire, all charges against him and JKLF-Y members would be dropped.
However, the Centre, in its ban notification dated March 15, 2024, and statements from officers involved in JKLF-Y cases, argued that despite abandoning armed struggle in 1994, Malik continued to support and foster terrorism.
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