In a decisive step, the government on Sunday declared pro-Pakistan separatist group Tehreek-e-Hurriyat (TeH), founded by late hardline separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani, as a banned organisation for the next five years.

The action, announced by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, is a response to the group’s involvement in fomenting terrorism and spreading anti-India sentiment within the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.