Hurriyat Conference (M) Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Thursday said all confidence building measures (CBMs) taken by India and Pakistan had gone to waste and the only way to de-escalate the tension at the Line of Control (LoC) was that New Delhi should announce immediate demilitarisation of Kashmir.
Addressing a gathering on the Urs of Khwaja Naqshband Sahib (RA) at Khawaja Bazar, the Hurriyat (M) chairman said Kashmiris had never supported war between India and Pakistan.
“The current situation at the LoC is grave. Both nuclear powers are in a confrontation mode which is not good. War will only bring destruction,” Mirwaiz said.
“We believe CBMs taken by India and Pakistan over the past eight years have gone to waste. The situation has once again gone back to square one.”
He said India and Pakistan should change their mindset. “Hurriyat will never support war between the two nations. We believe the only way to douse the flames at the LoC is that New Delhi should announce immediate demilitarization of Kashmir. Once that happens, guns will automatically fall silent at LoC,” the Mirwaiz said.
Mirwaiz appealed to the United Nations and the international community to persuade India for troop withdrawal from Kashmir so that peace could prevail between India and Pakistan. “Once troops go back to the barracks, atmosphere would become conducive for talks. And once dialogue begins, Kashmir will move towards resolution,” he said. “The solution has to be acceptable to the people of Jammu and Kashmir who are the real stakeholders.”
The Hurriyat (M) chief said if war took place between India and Pakistan, no power on earth could stop the destruction. “Imagine nuclear powers fighting a war. Everything including Kashmir would turn into rubble. We hope better sense prevails between the two countries,” he said.
He said the LoC firing was not because of Siachen, trade or China angle. “The Kashmir issue is the root cause of the problem,” the Mirwaiz said. He said the problem of Kashmir was serious in nature. “The entire India cried over the killing of two soldiers and its media hyped it up in every way possible. Indian media played a jingoistic role. I want to ask New Delhi, couldn’t they see 150,000 killings in Kashmir since 1990,” the Hurriyat (M) chairman questioned.
Mirwaiz said when Kashmiris got killed by forces, New Delhi maintained silence. “It was surprising to see even civil society members and intellectuals making venomous comments over the killing of two Indian soldiers. We want to ask them why they prefer to remain silent when Kashmiris are butchered.”
He advised New Delhi to “catch the bull by its horns” and to work towards settlement of the Kashmir issue instead of entering into confrontation with Pakistan. On the occasion, Mirwaiz prayed for an early resolution of the dispute.
