Burhan Wani Biography 
Burhan Wani was the commander of a Kashmiri militant group Hizbul Mujahideen, a Kashmiri separatist organization which wants to free Kashmir from India. A very popular young figure on social media, he was killed in an encounter with the Indian security forces on 8 July 2016 at the age of just 22. Following this incident, his popularity only increased and he became a folk hero in Kashmir. His actions of militancy against India in the Kashmir were largely received by people at other end, till his death.
Burhan Wani was born in Dadsara village of Tral area of Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir in 1994. His father Muzaffar Ahmad Wani was a higher secondary school principal, while his mother Maimoona Muzaffar teaches the Quran in her village. He had four siblings. He left home in 2010 and became a militant at the age of 15. He joined Hizbul Mujahideen in 2011, and got active in social media only later. Since then he gained immense popularity among Kashmiris through his posts he posted on social media.
On 13 April 2015, his brother Khalid went to meet his brother along with three friends. He was killed in an encounter by Indian security forces. The army claimed that Khalid was a militant sympathizer who took his friends to get them recruited, in the pretend of seeing his brother. The three friends of Khalid were arrested by the army. But police could not confirm if they joined the militancy. While his family and village residents rejected such allegations saying that he was tortured to death because his brother was a militant, officials denied it.
In 2013 Burhan Wani was in a gunfight with security forces. Later many photos surfaced on net, including a picture of him sitting along with 10 other militants. In a video released in June 2016, he assured that Amarnath pilgrims would not be attacked by the militants. Burhan was killed in an anti-insurgency operation on 8 July 2016 along with two other militants. His funeral was attended by more than 2 lakh people, described as the largest ever gathering by reporters. Violent protests also erupted in some areas of Kashmir Valley.
Published: March 01, 2019
Updated: March 01, 2019
