Condemning India over its forceful occupation of Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan announced on Thursday that the resolution of Kashmir dispute would be his party’s top agenda.
“India should know that military occupation is not a solution to the Kashmir dispute. They should learn lessons from the US’ invasion of Afghanistan. The US couldn’t win the Afghan war with military force,” Imran said while addressing a huge public gathering at Mirpur Cricket Ground.
“The PTI will resolve the Kashmir issue through dialogue. It will usher in a new era of prosperity for the peoples of South Asia,” he said.
As Thursday’s rally was the PTI’s first in Mirpur, it was attended by people in large numbers who were eager to see a glimpse of the cricket hero-turned politician.
Flanked by senior PTI leaders including Shafqat Mahmood, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Khurshid Kasuri and others, Imran said that Kashmir topped the PTI’s foreign policy list. Imran said that he had discussed the Kashmir issue with two former foreign ministers of the country – Khurshid Kasuri and Shah Mahmood Qureshi – both in the PTI now, and was informed that Pakistan and India were close to a solution on the issue.
He said his purpose in politics was service to the masses, and that his party would spend the finances on public welfare rather than producing stockpiles of weapons.
Referring to India’s deployment of 700,000 troops in Kashmir, Imran said that despite heavy troop presence, India could not win the hearts and minds of the Kashmiri people. He said there could be no sustainable peace in the subcontinent without resolving the Kashmir issue. “This is the reason why the resolution of the Kashmir dispute is the PTI’s number one priority,” he added. He also lauded the commitment of the Kashmiri expatriates who were still committed to the Kashmir cause.
However, he regretted that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)-led coalition government had ignored the Kashmir issue. During his speech, the PTI chief also touched on other burning issues other than Kashmir, including deteriorating law and order situation, Afghan war, and terrorism. “The influential thieves are granted NROs and the poor are jailed for minor mistakes. I am in politics due to the rule of tyranny. We have to abolish this system. We assure you, we would save Pakistan from these dacoit rulers. Uniform enforcement of law would be ensured,” he said.
Kashmir resolution tops PTI’s agenda: Imran
