Big protest demo held in Muzaffarabad to observe India’s Republic Day as Black Day
Big protest demo held in Muzaffarabad on India’s Republic Day today
Muzaffarabad, January 26 (KMS): A large protest demonstration was held in Muzaffarabad to observe India’s Republic Day as Black Day.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the protest was observed under the auspices of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference-Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Cell to denounce India’s occupation of Jammu and Kashmir.
The protest was led by APHC-AJK chapter leaders Sheikh Abdul Majeed, Muhammad Ashraf Dar, Syed Manzoor Ahmad Shah, Zahid Ashraf and Mushtaq-ul-Islam, and was attended by residents of Muzaffarabad, refugees and helpers, representatives of political, social and religious organizations, lawyers, students and people from different walks of life.
The participants carried black flags and banners highlighting Indian atrocities, grave human rights violations in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and the Kashmiri people’s demand for the right to self-determination, while raising pro-freedom and anti-India slogans.
Addressing the gathering, APHC-AJK General Secretary Advocate Parvez Ahmad Shah said India continues to trample international law, UN resolutions on Kashmir and even its own constitution to keep Kashmiris in chains. Jammu Kashmir Liberation Cell Director Raja Sajjad said India’s presence in occupied Jammu and Kashmir has taken the shape of an illegal colonial military occupation, and that India’s Republic Day symbolizes oppression and subjugation for Kashmiris.
AJK Prime Minister’s Spokesman Shaukat Javed Mir paid tribute to the resilience of the Kashmiri people against Indian repression. Dr Raja Muhammad Sajjad Khan said India’s treatment of minorities and Kashmir has exposed its real face globally.
Former AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan said Jammu and Kashmir has become a dangerous flashpoint due to India’s intransigence, stressing that Azad Kashmir is an inseparable part of the freedom movement. Refugees’ Representative Forum leader Ghulam Hassan Butt highlighted the forced displacement of Kashmiris due to Indian atrocities.
Later, a delegation led by Advocate Parvez Ahmad Shah submitted a memorandum to the UN office in Muzaffarabad, demanding implementation of UN resolutions and a just settlement of the Kashmir dispute.
Participants included Ansar Khan, Sardar Sajid Mahmood, Deputy Commissioner Munir Qureshi, representatives of government institutions, Syed Yasir Naqvi, Samia Sajjad Chishti, Raja Aftab Ahmad Khan, and representatives of national and regional press.
Meanwhile, Kashmiri activists staged a sit-in protest in Muzaffarabad to condemn the unrelenting reign of terror in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir on India’s so-called Republic Day. The demonstration, staged outside Muzaffarabad Press Club under the aegis of Pasban-e-Hurriyat Jammu Kashmir was aimed at drawing attention to the Indian occupation machinery’s brutal acts in the held territory and the enforcement of a slew of draconian laws.
Posters and banners depicting various forms of repression in occupied Jammu and Kashmir were displayed at the venue of the sit-in where participants raised slogans against India’s sham democracy and the continued subjugation of Kashmiris. They demanded their internationally recognised right to self-determination, and also called on the United Nations (UN) to intervene.
“Down with India’s farcical democracy” and “UNO, wake up and come to our rescue” were among the slogans chanted.
