Sheikh Abdullah a visionary leader, had unparalleled public support: Sagar

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Wednesday rejected the coarse allegations of Hurriyat Chairman Ashraf Sehrai as derogatory, and a considered attempt to gain prominence in the political horizon of Kashmir.
In a statement issued here on Wedneday, party general secretary Haji Ali Muhammad Sagar said that Hurriyat leader didn’t have the gumption to condemn people responsible for the killing of his colleague. “Strangely Sehrai is blaming a person who died in 1982 for the death of his party member. This is beyond comprehension. Sheikh sb was the tallest leader our state has ever produced. The title of Sher-e-Kashmir that was accorded to him was given by people who believed in his leadership and judgment.”
“The last farewell that people gave to Sher-e-Kashmir was reflective of his stature and political standing. Even his detractors appreciate what Sheikh Sb did for our state and its people. Number of intellectuals in India and Pakistan paid glorious tributes to Sher e Kashmir on his death. MD Taseer, famous Pakistani Urdu poet and writer had said that Kashmir owes its nationalism to Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah,” he said.
Sagar said that sehrai and his ideologue party contested elections when sheikh sahib was under penitentiary and confinement. “Instead of supporting Sher-e-Kashmir, they went ahead and took part in Assembly elections in 1971 against the wishes of people of Kashmir,” he said.
General Secretary said that Sehrai owes an explanation to the people of the state. “What have they been able to achieve in all these years except deaths,” he said.
Sagar said that the tributes that poured at the demise of Sher e Kashmir from all the State heads around the world reveal his stature. “Sheikh Sahib’s personality and achievements are too big to be belittled by people like Sehrai who have now resorted to name calling,” he said.
Sagar maintained that Sheikh Sb was a visionary leader and the champion of the people of Jammu & Kashmir. “Sehrai is trying to find substratum in the political landscape of Kashmir by blaming the tallest leader,” he said.