Major General (Retired) SR Sinho on Monday said the statement made by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, crediting Pakistan for peaceful elections in the Valley, has encouraged separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani to meet Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit.
"Whenever he [Syed Ali Shah Geelani] gets a chance, then he acts against India and its government and he always favours Pakistan. The statement made by Mufti has encouraged Geelani. The separatist leaders have got the encouragement to create a furore in Kashmir and raise the issue of Pakistan at the national and international level," he told ANI here.
"The government needs to take stringent action against him," he added.
Earlier in the day, Geelani held a 45-minute dialogue with Basit where they discussed issues pertaining to Kashmir.
Basit also appraised Geelani of Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar's visit to Pakistan.
This meeting comes two days after separatist leader Masarat Alam was released by the Jammu and Kashmir government.
In August 2014, a meeting between Basit and Geelani on eve of talks between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan had enraged the government, leading to the cancellation of Foreign Secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan.