Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front leader Yasin Malik has claimed that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh personally thanked him after a 2006 meeting with Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, according to an affidavit filed in the Delhi High Court. Malik, who is serving a life sentence in a terror-funding case, asserts that the meeting was held at the behest of India’s Intelligence Bureau and later briefed Singh, who expressed appreciation for Malik’s time, patience, and dedication.
Malik says that the directive came from V. K. Joshi, then Special Director of the Intelligence Bureau, ahead of Malik’s travel to Pakistan following the 2005 Kashmir earthquake. According to his statement, Joshi asked him not only to engage with political actors but also with hard-line militant figures, including Saeed and members of the United Jihad Council, in order to support what Malik describes as Singh’s peace efforts.
During the gathering in Pakistan, Malik claims he addressed militant attendees, urging them to renounce violence and citing Islamic teachings to promote peace. Upon his return to New Delhi, Malik maintains he debriefed the Prime Minister the same evening, in presence of then National Security Advisor M. K. Narayanan, where Singh, he alleges, conveyed his gratitude. Malik also claims Singh referred to him as the “father of the non-violent movement in Kashmir.”
The affidavit states that Malik’s meeting with Hafiz Saeed and associated militant leaders was subsequently used against him by prosecuting agencies, portraying his involvement as evidence of his closeness to terror outfits. Malik describes this depiction as a “classic betrayal,” saying that although the venture was arranged by intelligence officials, over time it has been framed politically to his detriment.
Malik also recounts that he had been invited by Manmohan Singh for formal dialogue in February 2006 in New Delhi, during which Singh reportedly assured him of the government’s intention to resolve the Kashmir issue.
