Traders hold sit-in protest in Srinagar against NIA's summon to KTMF prez

Srinagar, Sept 25: Dozens of traders on Monday held a sit-in protest in Srinagar against National Investigation Agency's (NIA) summon to Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF) president Mohammad Yaseen Khan in connection with the terror funding case. NIA has summoned Khan and Kashmir University student Aala Fazili to appear before it at its headquarters in New Delhi on Monday. Dozens of traders staged a sit-in protest at Partap Park in Srinagar, alleging that the notice to the KTMF president was an attempt to instill fear psychosis among the people of Kashmir, particularly traders. They said they will continue the protest until Khan leaves the NIA headquarters in New Delhi. The NIA has already arrested more than a dozen separatist leaders and businessmen in connection with terror funding from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The arrests followed raids at the residence of over a dozen separatist leaders, including spokesman of both the factions of Hurriyat Conference, sons of hardline Hurriyat chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani, his son-in-law and National Front chief Nayeem Ahmad Khan, who allegedly admitted during a sting operation that separatists were receiving money from abroad for terror and stone pelting activities. Khan, was later expelled from the hardline Hurriyat. The NIA also questioned Kashmir Bar Association president Advocate Mian Abdul Qayoum who was though later given a clean chit. Two youths, including a photo-journalist, were also arrested in connection with funding stone pelting, evoking massive protests from media organisations here. UNI