Srinagar, Dec 6 (IANS) Senior Hurriyat Conference leader Fazal Haq Qureshi, who was attacked outside his house by unidentified men here Friday, continues to be critical, doctors attending on him said Sunday.
A team of doctors who examined the 66-year old, who is on life support system in the Soura medical institute, described his condition as critical.

“There is no deterioration, but there is no improvement either. It is a status-quo situation,” a senior doctor told IANS. “Our hope is he may do well. We are regularly monitoring his condition.”

Qureshi was attacked Friday evening near his house while he was leaving the mosque after offering evening prayers in the Soura locality of the capital city.

A team of doctors operated upon Qureshi Friday night as he was brought to the institute minutes after the attack.

Both mainstream and separatist leaders have been visiting the hospital and the Soura home of Qureshi to enquire about his condition.

Qureshi, a senior leader of the moderate Hurriyat group headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, favoured a negotiated settlement of the Kashmir issue and wanted a dialogue with New Delhi.

The attempt on his life is seen as a violent warning to the moderate Hurriyat group against talks with the central government.

The executive committee of the Hurriyat Conference met here Saturday evening and reiterated that “the leadership won’t be cowed down by such dastardly attacks and efforts will continue to find a solution to the Kashmir issue through dialogue”.

The Al-Nasireen, a little-known guerrilla group believed to be an operational combine of the Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba terror groups, has owned responsibility for the attack.