Syed Ali Shah Geelani with the author, Ruwa Shah, his granddaughter [Photo courtesy of Ruwa Shah]
Syed Ali Shah Geelani
I
A life dedicated to Kashmir and its people BY RUWA SHAH
t was a frosty February afternoon in the Turkish city of Kayseri. I had just finished my exams, and was hoping to have a rare moment of respite after submitting all my assignments. But before I could heave a sigh of relief and relax, I got a text: “Just heard about your grandfather. I am so sorry.” My [maternal] grandfather, my “Aba”, is Syed Ali Shah Geelani, one of the most prominent figures in the Kashmiri resistance movement and the leader of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat. He is 91 years old, and his health is ailing. I have been away from home, studying towards a master’s degree in Turkey, since 2018. Due to the restrictions the [Indian] central government regularly puts on local communications in Indianoccupied Kashmir, I often spend days without talking to my family and getting updates about the health of my grandfather. So that text terrified me. When I finally managed to get my mother on the phone and ask her about my Aba, she confirmed that his condition was worsening and told me that he wants to be surrounded by family. 24 ISLAMIC HORIZONS MARCH/APRIL 2021
