The Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq Friday said that he has been seeking a “peaceful” resolution of the Kashmir issue as per the aspirations of the people, and questioned how such
Mirwaiz was addressing a Friday gathering at Jamia Masjid here, day after he was served a second notice by the National Investigation Agency asking him to appear before its court in New Delhi on March 18 in connection with an alleged militancy-funding case.
New Delhi is resorting to various tactics to suppress the voices of Kashmiris, Mirwaiz alleged.
“We won’t succumb to these threats and will continue to pitch for peaceful political resolution of the Kashmir issue,” he said. “Our struggle and fight are not against the sovereignty of any nation or religion but for the resolution of the issue which is lingering since 1947. How can doing so be linked with terrorism?” he asked.
Terming Kashmir as “one of the oldest disputes” on the agenda of the UN and the one that awaits a resolution, Mirwaiz said the people of Kashmir are not offering sacrifices for the resolution of the issue today alone, “but this started way back in 1931”.
“And ever since the partition of India that saw the birth of Pakistan in 1947, many new nations were formed, but Kashmir issue remained lingering as people continue to demand the solution of this vexed issue,” he said.
“I advocate the same what I told the former Prime Ministers of India, Manmohan Singh
Mirwaiz said for the past several decades, the pulpit of the central mosque has been highlighting the peoples’ rights and aspirations and will continue to do so in future.
“The pulpit will continue to highlight the miseries and pain inflicted on the people of
Mirwaiz said the leadership in Kashmir wasn’t eager for the chair or any sort of power, but “the seat of Mirwaiz is meant to highlight the truth and injustice without any fear”.
“People of Kashmir have been offering priceless sacrifices since 1947 and at the same time, the leadership
Mirwaiz alleged that the National Investigation Agency is launching crackdowns and issuing summons to “suppress Kashmiris” while the arrest spree was on and the resistance leaders are being slapped with PSA and sent to outside Kashmir jails.
“(But) this can’t force the people or the leadership into submission. These things are not new to us and we have been seeing this since 1931,” he said.
“Kashmiris’ voices can’t be suppressed through military power. Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah was sent to exile, and my father Mirwaiz Muhammad Farooq and Abdul Gani Lone were martyred. I have been fighting for rights of Kashmiris since the age of 17,” he said. “Islamia school was torched and my uncle was killed in a masjid. Despite all this, voices to demand peoples’ legitimate right became louder.”
Mirwaiz said the resistance leadership has made it clear in world forums including the United Nations and the OIC that Kashmir issue needs to be resolved politically.
But an atmosphere is being created through a vicious campaign through electronic media in India to portray Kashmir in a different way and an impression is being created that whosoever would talk about Kashmir resolution is a “terrorist”, Mirwaiz said.
He said that different ploys are being employed to muzzle
Mirwaiz
