Daily Times

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former Punjab governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar would address the members of the British House of Commons today to highlight India’s human rights’ violations in Occupied Kashmir.

PTI has dispatched its envoy to the United Kingdom to raise Kashmir issue in the British and European parliaments. According to his speech agenda, Ch Sarwar would address the members of the House of Commons today and expose Indian brutalities on innocent and peaceful Kashmiris demanding their right to self-determination.

Ch Sarwar in a statement issued on Monday stated that his party firmly believed in the just cause of Kashmiris’ right to self-determination and would leave no stone unturned to raise the grave issue on every forum. Despite not being in power, PTI would not leave its Kashmiri brethren alone in this time of need, he added.

Talking about his upcoming engagement with the House of Commons, Sarwar said that India was guilty of inflicting state terrorism and was committing grave violations of fundamental rights of Kashmiris, adding that the current wave of resistance against Indian aggression in Kashmir was a manifestation of unflinching resolve of Kashmiris against the suppressive Indian rule.

He said that Indian atrocities were continuing unabatedly and the valley of Jammu Kashmir had turned red with the blood of unarmed civilians. “Scores have been shot dead in indiscriminate firing, hundreds blinded due to use pellet guns and thousands have been paralysed,” Sarwar lamented, adding that the international community and champions of human rights must take notice of such blatant disregard of human lives in Kashmir.

Speaking on Indian threats to Pakistan, he argued that Indian threats to Pakistan, besides water terrorism, was aggravating the situation in the region and posed grave danger to international peace as both India and Pakistan were nuclear armed nations. He linked peace in sub-continent with resolution of Kashmir issue and said that Pakistan always supported the peace process.

“Every political party in Pakistan is in favour of resolving the issue with dialogue. However, our wishes for peaceful means should not be construed as our weakness,” he warned, adding that the world powers should push India to stop its violence in the valley and listen to the just demands of people. He also urged the Indian government to act upon United Nations’ resolutions on Kashmir.

Meanwhile, as several leaders of the parliamentary opposition head for the United Kingdom, some PML-N leaders have flagged the trip as “yet another ‘London plan’ against democracy”.

Jehangir Tareen, Chaudhry Sarwar and Sheikh Rashid recently left for London where Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Chairman Tahirul Qadri is already present.

National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had said the opposition leaders would meet in London to find the “lock” that would shut down Islamabad. “This is a conspiracy against democracy and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).”

The government would not allow the PTI to disrupt the capital on October 30, he maintained. “Imran Khan should exercise his right to protest all he wants but he must not work to derail democracy,” he added.

However, several members of the opposition rubbished the government’s fears of a ‘London plan’ brewing.