BJP asks Syed Geelani to apologise for 'anti-national activities' to get passport to visit ailing daughter

Jammu and Kashmir unit of BJP on Sunday said hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani should acknowledge he is Indian and "apologise" for his anti-national activities if he wants to get passport to visit his ailing daughter in Saudi Arabia.

"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," BJP spokesman Khalid Jehangir said in a statement here. "If Geelani sahib wants the passport, then has to fall in the line and follow law of the land," Jehangir said.

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". Geelani has sought a passport to visit his daughter, who is admitted in a hospital in Saudi Arabia in a critical condition. "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.