Hurriyat 'irrelevant', Kashmiris must move on, find place for themselves within India: Bilal Lone

Srinagar: Former separatist leader Bilal Gani Lone has held the Hurriyat Conference responsible for its own irrelevance, calling the separatist conglomerate "non-functional", while also slamming Pakistan for creating a "mess" and "fissures" in Jammu and Kashmir.

The comments of Lone mark a significant departure from traditional separatist rhetoric, acknowledging that both the Hurriyat and Pakistan had "faltered" on opportunities to bring progress to the region.

The next generation is the primary motivation for Lone's shift to mainstream politics, as he urged the younger generation to accept the reality that India is "too big a power" to fight and advised them not to see the country through the lens of political parties but to "see India as India" to find a space for themselves within the country.

He said the present generation has to be told the truth about the last 35 years as they have "no other option" but to enter this new political sphere because "the politics of exploitation has to stop".

Talking exclusively to PTI Videos, Lone asserted that the Hurriyat Conference, a separatist conglomerate formed in 1993, has lost its relevance in the Valley.

"Hurriyat is no more relevant as on date. Hurriyat functional bhi nahi hai (Hurriyat is not even functional)," he said, adding, "let's be honest about it... when you talk about Hurriyat as on date, it's not present anywhere in Kashmir." While acknowledging that people had reposed their trust in the Hurriyat in the past, Lone said the current reality was different.

"Hurriyat conference has lost relevance because we could not act," he said, adding, "so the concept of Hurriyat may have been good at that time... but when we visualise Hurriyat today, it is non-functional and somewhere, Hurriyat has faltered, no doubt about that." Lone was equally critical of Pakistan's role and said, "We have heard many statements but nothing has come out (of it)", and added that "Pakistan should help Kashmir in soothing things here, rather than creating fissures out here".

He dismissed the idea that Pakistan would ever "get" Kashmir through force, calling it a "very silly suggestion". To illustrate his point, Lone cited a recent escalation of tensions along the border that saw a 48-hour war-like situation. "Not even an inch moved at the border," he said.

Lone said that Kashmiris must now move on. "We need to come out of this mess, whether it is with or without Pakistan, we have to come out of this," he stated.

He expressed a deep sense of regret over the separatist movement's failures, saying, "The Hurriyat Conference had got a lot of opportunities, we faltered somewhere. And we could have got something for our people, but we couldn't. That's the reality, let's be honest about it." In a candid admission of past failures, Lone said his shift towards mainstream politics is born not out of political expediency, but a personal conviction to pursue a "genuine political process".

Reflecting on his journey, Lone said, "I have no regrets being on the other side of the fence, but the only regret, which is a very big one, is that we could not do anything. Much could have been done, but we could not", and summarised his change of heart with a Hindi adage: "dair aaye durust aaye (better late than never)." Addressing his move from separatist to mainstream politics, Lone said he is not in the race for any position like a chief minister or MLA, but is instead motivated by a desire to pay back his people. "I think I need to pay it back. So for me, it is a payback time," he said.

He said his new political narrative for the people would go beyond basic amenities like roads, power, and water, to instead focus on the future of the new generation. "We have to talk about their future which includes their education, health facilities, and prospects of setting up business," he said.

He underscored that the primary motivation for his new political journey is the next generation, which he said has been the biggest casualty of the conflict. "Violence has given us nothing. Violence ne yahan par barbaadi hi laayi hai (violence has only brought destruction here)," he said, adding that it has "finished generations".

Lone observed that a Kashmiri is "nowhere" today and "at the receiving end", a situation he attributes to years of violence.

He made an appeal to the people, urging them to look at India not through the lens of political parties like the BJP or Congress, but to "see India as India and try to find a space for themselves".

He warned that those who have tried to defeat India have "failed miserably," and the people must now accept that reality.

In a direct assessment of the post-Article 370 situation, Lone said that while the provision may have been politically hollow, it was a "psychological victory" for Kashmiris.

He said that while the BJP government may have won a "military war" by abrogating Article 370, it has "lost Kashmiris" by making the people feel "subdued" and "suppressed".

Lone, however, was quick to state that he is "too small a man" to advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi but urged the central government to "embrace" Kashmiris and not view the region through the "prism of a vote bank".

He said the government should "come and feel Kashmir with their hands" and "give a soothing effect" to the people, adding that they should also listen to voices beyond political parties.

On the security front, Lone said the situation is "first class" but is maintained by "the force of the stick", and stressed that the biggest casualty in Kashmir is "trust" . He said that a process of reconciliation must begin, not between countries, but between their own people.

He said a new chapter of "sincerity" must be started with the new generation, which is unaware of the past.