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{{short description|Separatist militant leader of JKLF from Srinagar, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2022}}
{{short description|Separatist militant leader of JKLF from Srinagar, India}}
{{Infobox officeholder
{{Infobox officeholder
| name            = Ashfaq Majeed Wani
| name            = Ashfaq Majeed Wani
| native_name_lang = nastaleeq
| native_name_lang = nastaleeq
| successor3       = [[Yasin Malik]]
| successor       = [[Yasin Malik]]
| birth_name      = Ashfaq Majeed Wani
| birth_name      = Ashfaq Majeed Wani
| birth_date      = {{Birth date|1966|09|05|df=yes}}
| birth_date      = {{Birth date|1966|09|05|df=yes}}
| birth_place      = [[Srinagar]], India
| birth_place      = [[Srinagar]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|J&K]], India
| death_date      = {{Death date and age|1990|03|30|1966|09|05|df=yes}}
| death_date      = {{Death date and age|1990|03|30|1966|09|05|df=yes}}
| death_place      = Srinagar, India
| death_place      = [[Srinagar]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|J&K]], India
| education        = [[Tyndale Biscoe School]]
| alma_mater      = [[Sri Pratap College]] <br /> [[University of Kashmir]]
| alma_mater      = [[Sri Pratap College]] <br /> [[University of Kashmir]]
| party            = [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front|JKLF]]
| party            = [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front|JKLF]]
| profession      = [[Commander-in-chief]] of [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front|JKLF]]
| office          = Commander of [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front]]
}}
}}


'''Ashfaq Majeed Wani''' (5 September 1966 – 30 March 1990)<ref>{{cite book |last=Bose |first=Sumantra |title=Kashmir: Roots of Conflict, Paths to Peace |url=http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674018174 |year=2005 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-01817-4 |pages=103}}</ref> was the first Commander in Chief of the [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front]], a militant [[Kashmiri nationalism|Kashmiri-separatist]] group in [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], [[India]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/protests-over-burhan-wani-s-death-a-redux-of-1990/story-1Knh49y4nGxK8JFVVjFrmL.html |title=From Ashfaq Majid Wani to Burhan Wani: Are protests in Kashmir a redux of 1990? |date=11 July 2016 |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |language=en |access-date=18 February 2019}}</ref> He was killed by [[Indian Paramilitary forces|Indian Paramilitary Forces]] in 1990 at the age of 24.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/kashmir/ashfaq-majeed-wani-remembered/143015.html |title=Ashfaq Majeed Wani remembered |date=14 March 2015}}</ref> He was allegedly involved in the [[1989 kidnapping of Rubaiya Sayeed|kidnapping of Rubiya Sayed]],<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/14-yrs-down-JKLF-admits-Rubaiya-kidnap/articleshow/484093.cms? |title=14 yrs down, JKLF admits Rubaiya kidnap – Times of India |work=The Times of India |access-date=31 January 2018}}</ref> daughter of [[Mufti Mohammad Sayeed|Mufti Mohammed Sayeed]], the then [[Home Minister of India]].
'''Ashfaq Majeed Wani''' (5 September 1966 – 30 March 1990)<ref>{{cite book |last=Bose |first=Sumantra |title=Kashmir: Roots of Conflict, Paths to Peace |url=http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674018174 |year=2005 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-01817-4 |pages=103}}</ref> was the first Commander in Chief of the [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front]], a militant [[Kashmiri nationalism|Kashmiri-separatist]] group in [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], India.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/protests-over-burhan-wani-s-death-a-redux-of-1990/story-1Knh49y4nGxK8JFVVjFrmL.html |title=From Ashfaq Majid Wani to Burhan Wani: Are protests in Kashmir a redux of 1990? |date=11 July 2016 |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |language=en |access-date=18 February 2019}}</ref> He was killed by [[Indian Paramilitary forces|Indian Paramilitary Forces]] in 1990 at the age of 24.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/kashmir/ashfaq-majeed-wani-remembered/143015.html |title=Ashfaq Majeed Wani remembered |date=14 March 2015}}</ref> He was involved in the [[1989 kidnapping of Rubaiya Sayeed|kidnapping of Rubiya Sayed]],<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/14-yrs-down-JKLF-admits-Rubaiya-kidnap/articleshow/484093.cms? |title=14 yrs down, JKLF admits Rubaiya kidnap – Times of India |work=The Times of India |access-date=31 January 2018}}</ref> daughter of [[Mufti Mohammad Sayeed|Mufti Mohammed Sayeed]], the then [[Home Minister of India]].


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Ashfaq Majeed Wani was born on 5 September 1966 in the Sarai Balla area of [[Srinagar]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] into a [[Kashmiri Muslim]] family. He studied at [[Tyndale Biscoe School]] and later went to [[Sri Pratap College]] and the [[University of Kashmir]]. When he was a teenager, sports were an important part of his life. He was a dedicated soccer player, a marathon runner, and a table tennis player, winning first prize in the interstate marathon tournament in 1985 and being selected to represent the state. "The Iranian revolution had left an indelible mark on him, after studying the literature about it. It had become a motif of resistance to him. Besides, he had become very disillusioned with the political scenario prevailing at the time, which favored the Indian suzerainty. He viewed the [[Instrument of Accession (Jammu and Kashmir)|accession to India]] as a yoke of slavery," said his father. His mother recalled "The Principal of the Biscoe School summoned us one day and informed that even though Ashfaq was a brilliant student and an athlete of repute, he possessed leanings quite uncommon in teenagers".<ref name=clay>{{Cite news |title=Ashfaq Majid: the raw clay of resistance |first=Mohsin |last=Hyder Ali |work=Kashmir Dispatch |location=Srinagar |date=30 March 2011 |url=http://kashmirdispatch.com/2011/03/30/ishfaq-majid-the-raw-clay-of-resistance/102536/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401210634/http://kashmirdispatch.com/2011/03/30/ishfaq-majid-the-raw-clay-of-resistance/102536/ |archive-date=1 April 2016}}</ref>
Ashfaq Majeed Wani was born on 5 September 1966 in the Sarai Balla area of [[Srinagar]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], India into a [[Kashmiri Muslim]] family of the [[Wani (surname)|Wani]] clan. He studied at [[Tyndale Biscoe School]] and later went to [[Sri Pratap College]] and the [[University of Kashmir]]. When he was a teenager, sports were an important part of his life. He was a dedicated soccer player, a marathon runner, and a table tennis player, winning first prize in the interstate marathon tournament in 1985 and being selected to represent the state. "The Iranian revolution had left an indelible mark on him, after studying the literature about it. It had become a motif of resistance to him. Besides, he had become very disillusioned with the political scenario prevailing at the time, which favoured the Indian suzerainty. He viewed the [[Instrument of Accession (Jammu and Kashmir)|accession to India]] as a "yoke of slavery", said his father. His mother recalled "The Principal of the Biscoe School summoned us one day and informed that even though Ashfaq was a brilliant student and an athlete of repute, he possessed leanings quite uncommon in teenagers".<ref name=clay>{{Cite news |title=Ashfaq Majid: the raw clay of resistance |first=Mohsin |last=Hyder Ali |work=Kashmir Dispatch |location=Srinagar |date=30 March 2011 |url=http://kashmirdispatch.com/2011/03/30/ishfaq-majid-the-raw-clay-of-resistance/102536/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401210634/http://kashmirdispatch.com/2011/03/30/ishfaq-majid-the-raw-clay-of-resistance/102536/ |archive-date=1 April 2016}}</ref>


At the age of 14, Wani refused to accompany his family members in the funeral procession of [[Sheikh Abdullah]], an early sign of what was to form a part of his ideology. Two years later he began organizing anti-India rallies.<ref name=clay /> By 1987, he was already on the radar of Indian intelligence agencies. He was arrested on 23 March 1987 for his involvement with the Muslim United Front, which took part in [[1987 Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly election|elections]], was imprisoned at the Central Jail, Srinagar. Hundreds of other opposition activists have also arrested in police crackdowns across Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir. He was released on parole after nine months, to attend his uncle's wedding. His period in prison had made him bitter and he was found to have cigarette burns all over his body.<ref>{{cite book |title=Ghosts of empire: Britain's legacies in the modern world. |publisher=Public Affairs |isbn=978-1-61039-232-7 |location=New York |date=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=32PEIn8bK3IC&pg=PA138}}</ref> After his release, Wani worked on the plans towards the procurement of arms from Pakistan-administrated Kashmir. A day before he left for Pakistan-administrated Kashmir while serving meals at the wedding reception, he overheard Mohiuddin Shah, a veteran National Conference politician talking about the futility of agitations against the government. Wani is known to have reprimanded him in these words "the government made two grave mistakes as far as Kashmir is concerned. First, they acceded to India and secondly, they let me on parole."<ref name=clay />
At the age of 14, Wani refused to accompany his family members in the funeral procession of [[Sheikh Abdullah]], an early sign of what was to form a part of his ideology. Two years later he began organizing anti-India rallies.<ref name=clay /> By 1987, he was already on the radar of Indian intelligence agencies. He was arrested on 23 March 1987 for his involvement with the Muslim United Front, which took part in [[1987 Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly election|elections]], was imprisoned at the Central Jail, Srinagar. Hundreds of other opposition activists have also arrested in police crackdowns across Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir. He was released on parole after nine months, to attend his uncle's wedding. His period in prison had made him bitter and he was found to have cigarette burns all over his body.<ref>{{cite book |title=Ghosts of empire: Britain's legacies in the modern world. |publisher=Public Affairs |isbn=978-1-61039-232-7 |location=New York |date=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=32PEIn8bK3IC&pg=PA138}}</ref> After his release, Wani worked on the plans towards the procurement of arms from Pakistan-administered Kashmir. A day before he left for Pakistan-administered Kashmir while serving meals at the wedding reception, he overheard Mohiuddin Shah, a veteran National Conference politician talking about the futility of agitations against the government. Wani is known to have reprimanded him in these words "the government made two grave mistakes as far as Kashmir is concerned. First, they acceded to India and secondly, they let me on parole."<ref name=clay />


Wani subsequently crossed into [[Pakistan-occupied Kashmir|Pakistan-Administrated Kashmir]] to obtain arms training under the supervision of the [[Pakistan Army]]. Many Kashmiris in the valley joined [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front|JKLF]] and obtained training and financial support in Pakistan and in [[Pakistan-occupied Kashmir|Pakistan Administrated Kashmir]]. Most returned to [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Indian Kashmir]] and the majority of them were killed by the [[Indian Army]] and [[Indian Paramilitary forces|Indian Paramilitary Forces]].
Wani subsequently crossed into [[Azad Kashmir]] to obtain arms training under the supervision of the [[Pakistan Army]]. Many Kashmiris in the valley joined [[Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front|JKLF]] and obtained training and financial support in Pakistan and in Azad Kashmir. Most returned to [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Indian Kashmir]] and the majority of them were killed by the [[Indian Army]] and [[Indian Paramilitary forces]].


Growing up in the Sarai Balla lanes of Srinagar city, Wani, was a science student studying at Shri Pratap Higher Secondary School, when he founded Islamic Students League with the help of other like-minded friends. Soon, he rose up in his circle and became area commander of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front in 1988.Often refused to take refuge inside houses he would sleep inside pipes at Idgah on many occasions.
Growing up in the Sarai Balla lanes of Srinagar city, Wani, was a science student studying at Shri Pratap Higher Secondary School, when he founded Islamic Students League with the help of other like-minded friends. Soon, he rose up in his circle and became area commander of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front in 1988. Often refused to take refuge inside houses he would sleep inside pipes at Idgah on many occasions.


== Death ==
== Death ==
Wani was killed at the age of 23, in an encounter with Indian paramilitary troops and an army unit in the Hawwal area of the old city Srinagar on 30 March 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Film on Ashfaq Majeed Wani |date=30 March 2011 |url=https://thekashmirwalla.com/2011/03/a-film-on-ashfaq-majeed-wani/ }}</ref>
Wani was killed at the age of 23, in an [[Encounter killing|encounter]] with Indian paramilitary troops and an army unit in the Hawwal area of the old city Srinagar on 30 March 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Film on Ashfaq Majeed Wani |date=30 March 2011 |url=https://thekashmirwalla.com/2011/03/a-film-on-ashfaq-majeed-wani/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110602052329/http://www.thekashmirwalla.com/2011/03/a-film-on-ashfaq-majeed-wani/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=2 June 2011 }}</ref>


== References ==
== References ==
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[[Category:1966 births]]
[[Category:1966 births]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian people]]
[[Category:Kashmiri people]]
[[Category:Kashmiri people]]
[[Category:Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:Kashmiri Muslims]]
[[Category:Kashmiri Muslims]]
[[Category:Kashmiri militants]]
[[Category:Kashmiri militants]]
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[[Category:Politicians from Srinagar]]
[[Category:Politicians from Srinagar]]
[[Category:People shot dead by law enforcement officers in India]]
[[Category:People shot dead by law enforcement officers in India]]
[[Category:Tyndale Biscoe School alumni]]

Latest revision as of 14:48, 11 February 2026


Ashfaq Majeed Wani
Commander of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front
Succeeded byYasin Malik
Personal details
Born
Ashfaq Majeed Wani

(1966-09-05)5 September 1966
Srinagar, J&K, India
Died30 March 1990(1990-03-30) (aged 23)
Srinagar, J&K, India
Political partyJKLF
EducationTyndale Biscoe School
Alma materSri Pratap College
University of Kashmir

Ashfaq Majeed Wani (5 September 1966 – 30 March 1990)[1] was the first Commander in Chief of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, a militant Kashmiri-separatist group in Jammu and Kashmir, India.[2] He was killed by Indian Paramilitary Forces in 1990 at the age of 24.[3] He was involved in the kidnapping of Rubiya Sayed,[4] daughter of Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, the then Home Minister of India.

Biography[edit | edit source]

Ashfaq Majeed Wani was born on 5 September 1966 in the Sarai Balla area of Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India into a Kashmiri Muslim family of the Wani clan. He studied at Tyndale Biscoe School and later went to Sri Pratap College and the University of Kashmir. When he was a teenager, sports were an important part of his life. He was a dedicated soccer player, a marathon runner, and a table tennis player, winning first prize in the interstate marathon tournament in 1985 and being selected to represent the state. "The Iranian revolution had left an indelible mark on him, after studying the literature about it. It had become a motif of resistance to him. Besides, he had become very disillusioned with the political scenario prevailing at the time, which favoured the Indian suzerainty. He viewed the accession to India as a "yoke of slavery", said his father. His mother recalled "The Principal of the Biscoe School summoned us one day and informed that even though Ashfaq was a brilliant student and an athlete of repute, he possessed leanings quite uncommon in teenagers".[5]

At the age of 14, Wani refused to accompany his family members in the funeral procession of Sheikh Abdullah, an early sign of what was to form a part of his ideology. Two years later he began organizing anti-India rallies.[5] By 1987, he was already on the radar of Indian intelligence agencies. He was arrested on 23 March 1987 for his involvement with the Muslim United Front, which took part in elections, was imprisoned at the Central Jail, Srinagar. Hundreds of other opposition activists have also arrested in police crackdowns across Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir. He was released on parole after nine months, to attend his uncle's wedding. His period in prison had made him bitter and he was found to have cigarette burns all over his body.[6] After his release, Wani worked on the plans towards the procurement of arms from Pakistan-administered Kashmir. A day before he left for Pakistan-administered Kashmir while serving meals at the wedding reception, he overheard Mohiuddin Shah, a veteran National Conference politician talking about the futility of agitations against the government. Wani is known to have reprimanded him in these words "the government made two grave mistakes as far as Kashmir is concerned. First, they acceded to India and secondly, they let me on parole."[5]

Wani subsequently crossed into Azad Kashmir to obtain arms training under the supervision of the Pakistan Army. Many Kashmiris in the valley joined JKLF and obtained training and financial support in Pakistan and in Azad Kashmir. Most returned to Indian Kashmir and the majority of them were killed by the Indian Army and Indian Paramilitary forces.

Growing up in the Sarai Balla lanes of Srinagar city, Wani, was a science student studying at Shri Pratap Higher Secondary School, when he founded Islamic Students League with the help of other like-minded friends. Soon, he rose up in his circle and became area commander of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front in 1988. Often refused to take refuge inside houses he would sleep inside pipes at Idgah on many occasions.

Death[edit | edit source]

Wani was killed at the age of 23, in an encounter with Indian paramilitary troops and an army unit in the Hawwal area of the old city Srinagar on 30 March 1990.[7]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. Bose, Sumantra (2005). Kashmir: Roots of Conflict, Paths to Peace. Harvard University Press. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-674-01817-4.
  2. "From Ashfaq Majid Wani to Burhan Wani: Are protests in Kashmir a redux of 1990?". Hindustan Times. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  3. "Ashfaq Majeed Wani remembered". 14 March 2015.
  4. "14 yrs down, JKLF admits Rubaiya kidnap – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Hyder Ali, Mohsin (30 March 2011). "Ashfaq Majid: the raw clay of resistance". Kashmir Dispatch. Srinagar. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016.
  6. Ghosts of empire: Britain's legacies in the modern world. New York: Public Affairs. 2013. ISBN 978-1-61039-232-7.
  7. "A Film on Ashfaq Majeed Wani". 30 March 2011. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011.

Bibliography[edit | edit source]