India cannot deprive Kashmiris of their right to self-determination: Shehbaz

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shehbaz Sharif Friday said that India cannot deprive Kashmiris of their right to self-determination by committing countless brutalities against them.

He said this in a meeting with a parliamentary delegation from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), comprising of ministers and members of AJK Legislative Assembly. The delegation was led by AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan.

Both the leaders strongly condemned the Indian brutalities committed against unarmed Kashmiri people in occupied Kashmir and violations of the Line of Control.

On the occasion, CM Shehbaz said that the international community should be apprised of the worst kinds of cruelty being committed by the Indian army against innocent Kashmiris.

He said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government was providing sufficient funds for different programmes aimed at providing basic necessities of life to the people of Azad Kashmir, adding that unprecedented steps have been taken for the development and prosperity of AJK. The chief minister further said that funds have been provided by the Punjab government from its budget for development and prosperity of AJK.

Moreover, the CM said that students from AJK were benefiting from the educational schemes launched by Punjab government, along with students from other provinces. He vowed that Punjab would continue to lend a helping hand for the betterment of the Kashmiri people in the future as well. He also pledged to solve the problems of refugees settled in the Punjab province.

On the occasion, AJK President Raja Farooq Haider said that CM Shehbaz had set new records of public welfare and the province had become a good example of development due to the hard work of its chief minister.

The speed and work quality of development in the province was a great example of efficient use of resources, he said. The Punjab government had given ample proof of its love for the Kashmiri people by providing resources for the development of AJK, he added.

The AJK delegation comprised of ministers, including Syed Shaukat and Chaudhry Aziz, Public Accounts Committee Chairman Muhammad Ishaq, members of the Legislative Assembly, including Mian Yasir Rashid, Javed Akhter, Raja Muhammad Siddique and others. Provincial Minister Malik Nadeem Kamran, Planning and Development (P&D) chairman, and others were also present on the occasion.