APHC-AJK pays glowing tributes to July 13 martyrs
Reaffirm Kashmiris’ resolve to continue struggle for freedom
Islamabad: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter has paid glowing tributes to the martyrs of July 13, 1931, calling the day a defining moment in Kashmir’s history and a timeless symbol of sacrifice, resistance, and the Kashmiri people’s unyielding quest for freedom.
According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC-AJK Convener Ghulam Mohammad Safi, in a statement in Islamabad, recalled the sacrifices of 22 valiant Kashmiris who were martyred while raising their voice against Dogra tyranny outside Srinagar Central Jail on July 13, 1931. He said these martyrs not only resisted oppression and injustice but also left behind a lasting legacy of freedom, dignity, and sacrifice for generations to come. He stated that the flame lit by these martyrs still burns brightly in the hearts of Kashmiris, and their mission will continue until Indian colonial occupation ends and Jammu and Kashmir is completely free.
Ghulam Mohammad Safi strongly condemned India’s ongoing brutalities in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, including extrajudicial killings, torture, illegal detention of Hurriyat leaders, political activists and youth, as well as demolition and seizure of civilian properties and dismissal of Kashmiri Muslim govt employees. He said that despite these inhumane acts, the Kashmiri people remain resolute, resisting Indian occupation with unwavering patience, courage, and determination.
Safi urged the United Nations, the OIC, international human rights organizations, and the global conscience to take urgent notice of India’s state-sponsored repression in occupied Kashmir. He said these grave crimes, and the continued silence of the international community is deeply regrettable, amounting to criminal negligence. Safi emphasized that India must be compelled to honour UN resolutions and grant the people of Kashmir their inalienable right to self-determination.
Senior leader of APHC-AJK and Chairman J&K People’s Freedom League, Muhammad Farooq Rehmani, in a separate statement in Islamabad, while paying glowing tributes to the martyrs of 13 July 1931, said that the day profoundly altered the political destiny of Jammu and Kashmir. He emphasized this historic day is recognized as a defining milestone in the region’s political struggle. He said that the people across Jammu and Kashmir were subjected to brutal oppression under Hindu Dogra rule, which faced a mass uprising following the revolutionary movement of 1931. Recalling the tragic aftermath of the 1947 Partition, he lamented that India, in violation of international law, invaded and forcibly annexed two-thirds of Jammu and Kashmir. This invasion, he noted, led to the large-scale massacre of Muslims in Jammu and forced the displacement and migration of thousands to Pakistan.
Rehmani reminded that the longstanding Kashmir dispute stems from India’s unlawful invasion of the State in 1947 and its subsequent violations of UNSC resolutions. He stressed that the people of Jammu and Kashmir will never accept Indian occupation, as it stands in direct defiance of their will and the UN-endorsed right to self-determination. He reaffirmed that any proposed solution that overlooks the historical context, the Kashmiri people’s struggle, and their immense sacrifices will fail to bring peace or justice. Only a plebiscite under the UN Commission for India and Pakistan (UNCIP) resolutions can offer a fair and lasting resolution to the dispute, he concluded.
Another senior APHC-AJK leader and Acting Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party Mehmood Ahmed Saghar in a statement in Islamabad, while recalling the supreme sacrifices of July 13 martyrs said that the valiant struggle of Kashmiris against despotic Dogra Maharaja was a cornerstone of the ongoing struggle for right to self-determination. Reiterating Kashmiri’ resolve to carry forward the mission of martyrs, he said that the Kashmiri youth who have taken the mantle of resistance were fully determined to take the ongoing struggle to its logical conclusion.
Saghar also commended the matchless sacrifices of tens of thousands of Kashmiri martyrs who laid down their precious lives for the noble cause of freedom. He expressed the optimism that the day was not far when the sacred blood of martyrs would reach to fruition and the people of Kashmir would achieve their cherished goal for which they offered unprecedented sacrifices. Saghar emphasized that a just and equitable solution of the lingering Kashmir dispute was imperative to ensure durable peace in the region and beyond.
All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Kashmir chapter leader Altaf Hussain Wani in a statement said that the all-out movement that started after the martyrdom of 22 Kashmiris at the hands of the Dogra army is a cornerstone in the ongoing struggle of the Kashmiris for their right to self-determination. He said the martyrs gave birth to a movement that still inspires those who believe in freedom, justice and equality today.
He termed the ongoing struggle in Kashmir as a continuation of the movement that started in 1931 against the oppressive Maharaja and said from 1931 to today, more than five lakh Kashmiris have sacrificed their lives for the sacred cause of freedom.
Altaf Hussain Wani, while reiterating the resolve of the Kashmiris to continue the mission of the martyrs, said the struggle for the right to self-determination will continue until the Kashmiris achieve their goal.
