Separatist Shabir Ahmad’s daughter distances herself from him, pledges allegiance to India

Srinagar, March 21 (PTI) Jailed separatist Shabir Ahmad Shah’s daughter Sama Shabir disassociated herself from her father’s Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) on Thursday, declaring her allegiance to the sovereignty of the Union of India.

In a public notice published in a local newspaper, the 23-year-old, a former CBSE topper in Kashmir, emphasised her status as a loyal Indian citizen and unequivocally distanced herself from the banned separatist organisation founded by her father, who is currently in Tihar Jail on money laundering and terror funding charges.

“I am a loyal citizen of India and I am not affiliated with any person or organisation which is against the sovereignty of the Union of India,” the 23-year-old Sama Shabir, the elder daughter of Shah, said in the notice.

“I am not associated with the DFP or its ideology in any way,” Sama Shabir stated, cautioning that legal action would be pursued against anyone linking her to the separatist group without authorisation.

Shabir Ahmad Shah (70) was arrested in 2017 by the Enforcement Directorate over alleged money laundering activities linked to terror financing. He was later chargesheeted by the National Investigation Agency also for alleged terror financing.

The case stemmed from a 2005 incident in which Mohammed Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, was apprehended by the Special Cell of Delhi Police with a substantial amount of cash, purportedly intended for Shah.

Sama was summoned by the ED in 2019 in connection with the case, but she did not appear at that time as she was in the United Kingdom studying law.