Omar Abdullah favours passport for hardline Hurriyat leader

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today said hardline Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani should be provided a passport.

"Some time back, we have heard from Geelani that he wants a passport. I have conveyed to the Centre that he should not be stopped.

"Whosoever we can provide a passport, we should give him," Omar told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.

The chief minister's comments on issuing a passport to Geelani, who is often placed under house arrest, came a day after it was revealed that moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umer Farooq had opposed issuance of travel documents to him.

"When we met Mirwaiz in February, he said it would be a big mistake for the GoI (Government of India) to issue Geelani a passport to travel because he will stir up trouble," a March 2007 US embassy cable had said.