Mirwaiz Umar Farooq
Muhammad Umar Farooq | |
|---|---|
| Born | 23 March 1973 Indian Administered Jammu and Kashmir |
| Occupation | Mirwaiz |
| Spouse | Citizen of United States. |
Mirwaiz Muhammad Umar Farooq (born 23 March 1973) is the chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, a grassroots coalition of pro-independence secessionist groups in Jammu and Kashmir. He attended Burn Hall School in Srinagar.
A Mirwaiz(preacher) of Kashmir and head of the Omar faction of Hurriyet he has both an important religious and political role in the politics of the Valley.
Placed on the stage at the age of 17, following the assassination of his father, Mirwaiz Maulvi Farooq,then the leader of Awami Action Committee, Umar Farooq united 23 Kashmiri militant organizations into the APHC. He maintains that dialogue must take place with India and Pakistan, so long as the Kashmiri aspirations are heard as well.
Mirwaiz is the term for the traditional leader of Muslims in Kashmir. He inherited the title as the 12th Mirwaiz and was the founder chairman of the Hurriyat in 1993. Before he began an active career in Kashmir politics, he nurtured the ambition to become a software engineer. He holds a master's degree in Islamic studies.
After joining of Shabir Shah with Umar Farooq's Hurriyet recently, the Mirwaiz has grown into a more powerful political entity. He has attempted to bridge the gap between his faction and that of Syed Ali Shah Geelani. This effort was a precursor to his visit to Pakistan held Kashmir and Islamabad in June this year.Shabir Shah also helped to bring the two factions of huriyat closer.
His Pakistan visit saw a major change in his approach to the Kashmir issue, taking a major tilt towards India's sovereignity over the area. He announced that the United Nations has failed Kashmiri people from India's wrath. Till January this year, he had maintained his belief in an UN sponsored resolution of the problem.