Daily Times

Azad Jammu Kashmir President Sardar Masood Khan has urged British Parliamentarians and the British civil society to have a dialogue with 10 Downing Street, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Dominic Raab and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) over the deteriorating situation in Indian-held Kashmir. He said that that the UK government should avoid diplomatic escapism and not term the Kashmir dispute as a bilateral issue.

The president made these remarks while addressing a webinar titled “Twin Lockdown in Kashmir and Global Response”, organized by Tehreek-e-Kashmir-UK on Saturday, AJK President office told media on Saturday. The event was attended by academics and leading Members of Parliament belonging to the Conservative, Labour, SNP and Lib-Dem.

Sardar Masood said that concrete steps should be taken to help stop the egregious human rights violations, killings, torture, rape and incarcerations taking place under the twin lockdown imposed in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. He said that the situation in IHK is fast deteriorating and there is a humanitarian and human rights crisis. Referring to the recent Sopore shooting incident where the 65-year-old Bashir Ahmed Khan was martyred by CRPF personnel and images of his 3-year-old grandson wailing atop his bloody lifeless body as a harrowing reminder of the atrocities taking place in IHK.

The president said that a twin lockdown, firstly in the shape of a siege imposed in August last year and now, adding to it, a Covid-19 pandemic lockdown has made the lives of Kashmiris a living hell.

“In April this year, they [India] went a step further and introduced the New Domicile Rules. Under these rules, India has done away with the Kashmiris’ exclusive right to livelihood, acquisition of property, employment and educational scholarships. The President likened India’s actions taken to reoccupy the territory and further bifurcating as an act of imperialism and settler colonialism.

Transformation of the demography, he maintained, accounts for grave human rights violations under the Geneva Convention, ICC statute and UN Security Council resolutions. He added that in a matter of days, 25,000 Hindus from all over India have been given domiciles of IHK; and in the same manner, in which Muslim Indians have become second class citizens, Kashmiris have to run from pillar to post just to prove that they are State subjects.

“If we don’t stop this now, IHK won’t be a recognizable entity like it is today. 2 million Hindus will be brought in over the coming years. Help us stop this land grab” he said.

Labour MP Liam Byrne said that the UK has to drop the pretence that this disputed issue must be resolved bilaterally. There should be impartial third-party mediation for the resolution of the issue in accordance with the UN SC resolutions on Kashmir. He added that there is a risk of war if the situation escalates amongst the two neighbours. He also condemned the growing sectarian polarization in India and termed it as a degradation of the secular character of India.

MP Nadia Whittome (Labour) demanded the withdrawal of troops and an end to human rights violations in IHK. She also said that Articles 35-A and 370 should be immediately restored. MP Stella Creasy from the Labour Party vowed to raise the issue of Kashmir with parliamentarians from all parties.

MP James Daly, Chairman Conservative Friends of Kashmir, Vice-Chair of All-Party Parliamentary Group in Kashmir committed to standing for the inalienable right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people.

MP Jim McMahon (Labour) said that despite the fact that almost one year has come to pass since the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had released its second report on Kashmir on July 8, 2019, no progress has taken place and instead the situation has deteriorated even more.

The event was attended by Chairman Conservative Friends of Kashmir & Vice Chair APPG on Kashmir James Daly MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport Jim McMahon OBE MP, Liam Byrne MP, Former Member of European Parliament Phil Bennion, Brenden O’Hara MP, Nadia Whittome MP, Alex Norris MP, Christian Wakeford MP, Stella Creasy MP, Rachel Maskell MP, Danish Writer Jane Teller, Senior Kashmiri Hurriyat Leader and Chairman Jammu Kashmir Salvation Movement Altaf Ahmed Bhat and Chairman Kashmir Institute of International Relations Altaf Hussain Wani.