Police on Tuesday attached immovable property of US-based Kashmiri separatist and lobbyist Ghulam Nabi Shah alias Dr Fai in central Kashmir’s Budgam district.

“In compliance with the court directions, land measuring one kanal and two marlas under Survey No. 466 situated at village Wadwan and land measuring 11 marlas under Survey No. 343 located at village Chattabugh, District Budgam, has been ordered to be attached,” a police spokesman said.
The District Collector, Budgam, has been instructed to take possession of the said properties.
The attachment followed hours after a NIA court in Budgam ordered the attachment of over 1.5 kanals of land belonging to Fai.
The prosecution sought attachment of the property of Fai, under Section 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code (now Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita), on the ground that the court had in April declared him an absconder in connection with an FIR registered for offences under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The prosecution has sought attachment of the personal property of Fai, comprising land measuring 1 kanal and 2 marlas in village Wadwan and 11 marlas in village Chattabugh of Budgam district.
“This Court is satisfied from the record that the accused, despite being given an opportunity to appear before the IO (investigation officer) has deliberately and intentionally concealed himself. This Court is constrained to issue an order for attachment of property in terms of Section 83 of Cr.P.C (85 of BNSS),” the Special Judge (NIA) Budgam Yahaya Firdous said in the order.
Before proceeding with the attachment, the court directed the District Collector, Budgam, to seek assistance from the revenue authorities for proper identification and demarcation of the properties in question.
Fai has long been associated with separatist leaders in Kashmir. He moved to the United States in 1977 to pursue higher studies and later acquired US citizenship. Fai is the chairman of the World Forum for Peace & Justice.
Police said investigations have revealed the involvement of the accused in separatist activities, including the dissemination of propaganda aimed at undermining the sovereignty and integrity of the nation.
The NIA court’s order on attachment of Fai’s property follows an application by Assistant Public Prosecutor Mohammad Iqbal Rather under Section 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code (now Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita).
Originally a resident of Budgam, Fai was declared a “proclaimed absconder” by the court in April this year after he failed to respond to a 30-day notice to appear before police. The case against him was registered in 2020 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Fai, 76, has a long history of legal trouble in both India and the United States. He rose to prominence as the director of the Washington-based Kashmiri American Council (KAC), which he claimed was an independent grassroots organisation to highlight the so-called “oppression of people of Kashmir”.
He was arrested by the FBI in 2011 after an investigation showed that the KAC was a “front” for the Pakistani intelligence agency ISI. The US authorities proved that for over 20 years, Fai funnelled at least USD 3.5 million from the ISI into the US to influence American policy on Kashmir.
In 2012, Fai was sentenced to two years in prison by a Virginia federal court for conspiracy and tax violations. At the time, US Attorney Neil MacBride noted that Fai had “lied to the Justice Department, the IRS, and many political leaders” while pushing ISI propaganda. After his release, he was kept under supervision for three years.