Published on, Sept. 3 -- September 3, 2025 2:19 AM

"Islam removes people from slavery of the people and secularism makes people the slave of Delhi." Such profound words could only spring from a man who is from the noble lineage of the HOLY PROPHET HAZRAT MUHAMMAD E MUSTAFA (PBUH) and bore the blessed bloodline of Hazrat Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani (R.A). Syed Ali Shah Geelani's holy lineage not only reinforced his spiritual convictions but also shaped the resolute ideological path he charted throughout his life.

Born in 1929 in Zur Manz village near Wular Lake, Geelani rose from a schoolteacher's humble origins to become the foremost ideologue of Kashmiri resistance. His ascent to political prominence began in the 1950s when he joined Ja...