SRINAGAR: All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said on Friday it was unfortunate that restrictions were being imposed on the peaceful activities of the resistance leadership in the Indian-held Kashmir and it was being put under house arrest.
In his Friday sermon at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar, Farooq said that he was put under house arrest for two weeks, but now he had been allowed to lead the Friday prayers. He said the government itself was raking up sensitive issues with reference to the held Kashmir. He said the people of Kashmir and the resistance leadership would strongly oppose all such moves.
Farooq said the plans involving Sainik colonies, separate townships for displaced Kashmiri pundits, and the new industrial policy were against the interest of the Kashmiri people and they were meant to divide Kashmir. He said that return of the Kashmiri pundits was being politicised to portray the just struggle of the Kashmiri people as an extremist movement. He said that efforts were being made to create an impression that Kashmiri pundits were not safe among the Kashmiri Muslims; therefore, separate townships were needed for them. He said the APHC believed that Kashmiri pundits were an integral part of the Kashmiri society and his party would always welcome their return to Kashmir.
Farooq said the resistance leadership had chalked out a joint plan to register its protest and make people aware of the consequences of the moves such as Sainik colonies. He said the resistance leadership would follow this plan with commitment. Calling upon the Indian government to clarify its stance on these issues, he said that APHC’s struggle had always been peaceful in every respect; it did not disturb peace.
Terming the imprisonment of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front Chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik at Srinagar’s Central Jail, house arrest of veteran resistance leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani and restrictions on the movement of the rest of the resistance leadership as a reflection of Indian government’s frustration, Farooq called upon the government of India to realise that Kashmir was a political issue and it could not be resolved through the use of force. Describing the resolution of Kashmir as a must to save the future of the millions of people of South Asia, the APHC leader said the issue needed to be resolved according to the wishes and aspirations of the people of Kashmir through a meaningful dialogue among India, Pakistan and the Kashmiri leadership.
