IIOJ&K Assembly polls no substitute for Kashmiris’ rights: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has categorically rejected the elections for the Legislative Assembly of Indian Illegally-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K), asserting that these polls are no substitute for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination.

Talking to a delegation of migrants from IIOJ&K residing in Pakistan since 1989, led by Uzair Ahmed Ghazali, at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on Wednesday, the president emphasized that such elections are unacceptable to the people of Kashmir and called upon the international community to hold the Modi government accountable for ongoing human rights violations in IIOJ&K.

Welcoming the delegation, President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the Legislative Assembly elections in IIOJ&K, terming them as part of India’s broader strategy to consolidate its illegal occupation of the region. He highlighted that such measures could neither legitimise India’s occupation nor suppress the freedom struggle of the Kashmiri people.

He stated that India was trying to alter the demographic structure of IIOJ&K by turning the Kashmiri Muslims into a minority and transforming them into a disempowered community in their own land.

The delegation thanked the president continued moral, political and diplomatic support for the Kashmiri people.