Srinagar: Hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani has applied for an Indian passport to go to Saudi Arabia and visit his ailing daughter.
However, Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said Geelani should acknowledge that he is an Indian and "apologise" for his anti-national activities if he wants to get the passport.
"Passport cannot be given to Geelani sahib till he apologises for the mistakes he has committed during the past 25 years. Passports are issued to Indian citizens and not the ones who don't believe in India and its democracy. If Geelani sahib wants the passport, then has to fall in the line and follow law of the land," BJP spokesman Khalid Jehangir said in a statement.
The BJP spokesman said "if Geelani acknowledges that he is an Indian and won't indulge in anti-India activities, then Government of India can consider his request for the passport. The Government of India cannot give a passport to a person who spews venom against the country where he lives and enjoys all the comforts," Jehangir said.
The Peoples Democratic Party, which is the other coalition partner in Jammu and Kashmir government, though has said that Geelani's request is a humanitarian issue and should be considered. Along with Geelani, two other members of his family have applied for the passport.
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