Mirwaiz believes Kashmir struggle based on justice

• ‘Highly educated young people rendering sacrifices for freedom’

Hurriyat Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has said that as part of efforts to undermine the political struggle of the Kashmiri people, deceitful and divisive statements are issued by people at the helm in the Indian government.

Addressing Friday congregational gathering at the historic Jamia Masjid on the first Friday of Ramzan, Mirwaiz who was released from his six-day long house detention, said that Kashmir struggle was based on the principle of justice and people were committed to continue their fight for the right to self-determination.

He condemned the continuous detention of Syed Ali Geelani at his Hyderpora residence who is not even being allowed to offer Friday prayer. He demanded the immediate release of all pro-freedom leaders and youth who remain lodged in various jails across the disputed state.

He said that coming together of the Hurriyat leadership has unnerved New Delhi, which is trying its level best to discredit the movement and its leadership and now they were trying to mislead Indian people and the world community that the Kashmiri freedom movement was confined to few districts and communities.

Mirwaiz said that let those in power in India and their local collaborators get it clear that jailing, detaining, arresting or gagging the pro-movement leadership would not affect the determination of the people and their firmness in striving for their political aspirations and will to decide their destiny.

He paid glowing tributes to the two youth who were martyred in a gun-battle at Sopore, saying that the Kashmir struggle has entered into a very crucial phase. Given the nature of sacrifices offered by the Kashmiri youth, “we are duty bound to take the ongoing freedom struggle to its ultimate goal,” he said.

In a statement, Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik said that the struggle that was being nourished by the sacred blood of young and highly educated martyrs cannot be defeated or subjugated by any tyranny, oppression, false propaganda, arrest spree, intimidations and suppression.

He said that more the tyranny increases, nearer was its end and today “what we are witnessing in Jammu Kashmir is increasing oppression and tyranny which means that its end is near now.” He said that the oppression by Indian forces was bound to get stiff resistance from Kashmiris as history stands a witness to the fact that no people’s movement ever has been defeated or subjugated by military might or false propaganda.

Today on one side, the Indian forces and police have unleashed a reign of terror against Kashmiris and on the other side, a vicious propaganda and intimidations were going on against resistance movement and leadership, he said. The Indian bias media has launched a campaign to demonise Kashmiris and all this was intended to defame and defeat Kashmiri resistance movement against illegal Indian occupation, he said.

The JKLF chairman said that oppression unleashed by Indian occupational forces throughout Kashmir was a testimony to the fact that Kashmir was illegally occupied by India and Kashmiris were being subjected to worst kind of oppression by this so-called biggest democracy.