AJK president urges UK govt to play role in resolving Kashmir issue

LONDON: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry, while reminding the British government of its moral obligations vis-a-vis the resolution of longstanding Kashmir dispute, on Thursday said that the issue, rooted in flawed partition of British India, continued to pose a threat to the region’s peace and stability.

Addressing British Parliamentarians in the House of Commons, the AJK president said that the Kashmir issue arose after Britain left the subcontinent. He termed the Kashmir dispute as a constant threat to the region’s peace and security, adding that the long-standing dispute hangs on despite the lapse of 77 years.

He said that Kashmiris have been desperately looking for help from international community. Highlighting the highly vulnerable situation in the region, the AJK president reminded the parliamentarians that both Pakistan and India were two nuclear powers and any mishap in the highly volatile region could trigger a nuclear war, which would jeopardise the peace of the entire region.

He said that the international community should realise the fact that peace in South Asia was inescapably linked to the settlement of the unresolved Kashmir issue. “The international community should bear in mind that the key to establishing peace in South Asia lies in resolving the Kashmir issue,” he said.

Stressing the need for an inclusive dialogue to settle the lingering dispute peacefully, he said that there was a dire need to associate Kashmiri leadership with dialogue process. The Kashmiris, he said, were the main stakeholders and a basic party to the dispute.

Barrister Chaudhry, however, maintained that bloodshed in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K) and dialogue cannot go together. He said that the international community must exert its pressure on the Indian government to stop bloodbath of innocent Kashmiris and adopt confidence building measures to create a congenial environment for talks.

Referring to the continued bloodshed and violence in the IIOJ&K, the AJK president said that the RSS-influenced regime had broken all records of barbarism and brutality in Kashmir. Shedding light on Indian intelligence agency’s role in transnational killings, he said that India has now become a certified sponsor of global terrorism. He said that besides Canada, other countries of the world have also shared evidence of India’s involvement in terrorist activities abroad.

Citing the brutal repression and persecution of religious minorities in India, he said that India has virtually been transferred into a fascist state where there was no space for other minorities.

The members of the British Parliament and House of Commons including Imran Hussain, Debbie Abrahams, Neil Duncan Jordan, Jon Trickett, Tahir Ali, Grahame Morris, Matt Turmain, John McDonnel, Harpreet Uppal of Lords Lord Qurban Hussain, Ian Lavery MP, Jas Atwal MP, Muhammad Iqbal, Andrew Pakes, Ayub Khan, Baroness Pola Uddin, Baroness Nosheena Shaheen Mobarik, Baroness Shaista Gohir, Gill Furness Furniss, Paula Barker, Kate Dearden, Sally Jameson, Manuela Perteghella, Anna Dixon, Will Forster MP and others were present on the occasion.

They assured the AJK president of their continued support to Kashmiris’ legitimate political struggle. They also assured of raising their voice in support of Kashmiris’ right to self-determination within and outside the Parliament. “We have been raising our voice in support of the Kashmiri people in the past and will continue to raise our voice for the right of self-determination of the Kashmiri people in the future,” they added.

They also appreciated Barrister Sultan Mehmood Chaudhry for his selfless services to the Kashmiris’ just cause and his significant contribution in highlighting the plight of Kashmiri people at international level.