Probe Agency Attaches Property of Kashmiri Activist and Businessman Mubeen Shah

Srinagar: The Counter Intelligence Kashmir (CIK), the specialised counter‑terror and counter‑propaganda wing of the J&K Police, on Wednesday attached immovable property belonging to former Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) president Dr Mubeen Ahmed Shah, bringing renewed attention to a businessman once known for his role in Kashmir’s trade and cross-Line of Control (LoC) commerce and now named in a 2020 case linked by investigators to alleged digital propaganda and secessionist activity.

The attached property, officials said, comprises 12 marlas (approximately 3,270 sq.ft.) of land at Buchwara, Dalgate, Srinagar, and the action was carried out in connection with FIR No. 07/2020 registered at Police Station CIK after completion of required legal formalities.

According to official accounts, a CIK team led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Nisar Ahmed and District Investigation East Inspector Rashid Khan reached Shah’s residence in the Buchwara locality and executed the attachment proceedings in the presence of revenue officials. The land is recorded under Khasra Nos. 236 and 337 of Estate Buchwara and Survey Nos. 889/703, 595/353 and 888. Local revenue officials, including Naib Tehsildar Shah Mohammad Asif, were present during the process and completed the necessary documentation on the spot. Officials maintained that the attachment forms part of the continuing investigation and that further proceedings will be taken in accordance with law.

Shah, son of late Kashmiri business tycoon Ali Shah, is himself a prominent Srinagar-born businessman and former trade leader who headed the KCCI from 2006 to 2008. The urologist-turned-businessman and industrialist has been associated with the handicrafts trade abroad, particularly in Malaysia and Türkiye, where he has been residing with his family for past several years. He also headed the Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a body linked to traders engaged in cross-LoC trade between J&K and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), giving him a public profile that extended beyond conventional business circles into the politics of commerce, connectivity and regional engagement.

Shah’s name had earlier figured among political figures, trade representatives and civil-society voices detained around August 2019, when the Centre revoked J&K’s special constitutional status under Article 370. He was booked under stringent Public Safety Act (PSA) and lodged outside the Valley before being released later that year. Since then, according to officials, he has remained outside India. Some reports place him in Malaysia with his family, while others suggest he later shifted to Türkiye, where pro-Kashmir diaspora activity around platforms such as Kashmir House in Istanbul has also been associated with his public engagements.

The present action flows from FIR No. 07/2020, in which Shah, California-based architect Azizul Hassan Ashai, also known as Tony Ashai, and Rifat Wani of Trehgam, Kupwara, have been named. The case invokes Sections 153-A and 505 of the Indian Penal Code, relating to promoting enmity and public mischief, along with Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Investigators allege that the accused were part of a coordinated online campaign that used social media platforms to circulate fabricated, distorted and inflammatory material aimed at creating disaffection against the Union of India, provoking unrest and furthering a secessionist narrative.

In December last year, the Special Judge designated under the NIA Act in Srinagar issued proclamation orders under Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure against Shah, Ashai and Wani after they were stated to have failed to appear before the court. The court directed them to appear on or before January 31, 2026, and warned that non-appearance could trigger proceedings under Section 83 CrPC, including attachment of movable and immovable properties. Wednesday’s action against Shah’s Buchwara property is being viewed by officials as a follow-up to that legal process.

Officials say the case reflects what they describe as the changing nature of security challenges in J&K, where propaganda, misinformation and online mobilisation are now treated by agencies as part of a wider ecosystem linked to separatist activity. According to the CIK version, the accused allegedly exploited digital platforms such as Facebook, X and WhatsApp to push narratives intended to disturb public order, incite street violence and undermine national sovereignty. The agency has said it remains committed to countering digital subversion, anti-national propaganda and unlawful activity that threatens public order and India’s territorial integrity.

No immediate direct reaction from Shah to Wednesday’s attachment was available. However, in earlier public interventions from exile and diaspora platforms, Shah has repeatedly projected himself as a Kashmiri political and economic voice critical of New Delhi’s post-2019 policies, speaking about alleged rights violations, economic distress, digital restrictions and the need for international attention to Kashmir. Indian authorities, by contrast, have described such activity as part of a hostile propaganda campaign.