Unlike the houses of other ‘pro-freedom’ leaders in Kashmir, Prof Abdul Gani Bhat’s residence in Srinagar’s uptown Jawaharnagar area has no guards at the entrance. In a crowded room inside, the ailing Hurriyat Conference co-founder is talking about geopolitical changes in the region and their impact on Kashmir. He says Hurriyat (named after the Arabic word for ‘freedom’) outlived Article 370 and won’t be out of circulation in the absence of 92-year-old leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani (in pic), who died on September 1 after spending most of the past 11 years under house arrest. “Hurriyat is not like a building that catches fire and is gone. It is a sentiment deeply rooted in Kashmir’s collective soul,” says Bhat. “A political group that chose to represent the soul cannot be wished away. I may die tomorrow and another leader the day after, but Hurriyat is a symbol, it will live on. Symbols never perish.”