Hundreds of people from across Jammu and Kashmir and beyond have removed their names from the Facebook friends’ list of noted Kashmiri lobbyist Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai within 48 hours of his arrest in the United States.
The 62-year-old Fai with another man, Zaheer Ahmad — both US citizens — have been charged with conspiracy, saying they lobbied the US government without disclosing the fact that they were being funded by the Pakistani government, including its spy agency ISI.
Those who chose to “unfriend” Fai include some Srinagar and New Delhi-based academics, journalists, members of “thinktanks” and social and political activists.
Ironically, some journalists who have enjoyed his hospitality during their visits to the US or travelled there on his invitation over the past two decades were quick in deleting their names from his friend list.
Hurriyat joins campaign for Fai
The panic buttons were pushed also by reports emanating from Delhi that the Indian security agencies may soon question political and human rights activists, prominent separatist leaders including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and members of the media fraternity for whom Ghulam Nabi Fai had played a host or were in constant touch with him.
On Thursday afternoon, the number of Fai’s Facebook friends had come down to 280 from over 1,500 three days ago.
Meanwhile, the Mirwaiz-led Hurriyat Conference faction has also formally joined the campaign underway here against Fai’s arrest saying the move was not only undemocratic but would also act as a stumbling block in any individual peaceful effort aimed at seeking justice for the people of Jammu and Kashmir and resolving their political problems.
A statement issued here said that the conglomerate faction's high-power executive council met here to discuss Fai's arrest and its probable fallout on the Kashmiri “freedom struggle.”