SRINAGAR — Breaking silence after three months post-resignation, the erstwhile Chairman of APHC Syed Ali Shah Geelani asserted that the entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir including Kashmir valley, Jammu, Ladakh, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit & Baltistan is a disputed region and can be only determined through fair plebiscite under the aegis of United Nations.
“This is the position United Nations has taken and maintained through its several resolutions and all the parties to dispute that is Pakistan, India and Kashmiri people have also agreed to it. Over the years while India did backtrack from its commitment and continued to keep Kashmir under its illegal occupation through oppression and repression. Pakistan and Kashmiri people have firmly stuck to their position and remained on the same page in respect to the resolution of the Kashmir dispute.”
“Pakistan’s policy to abstain from consolidating any part of the Kashmiri territory under its control and maintaining the status quo has been in line with both the aspirations of the Kashmiri people and the spirit of the UN resolutions. It has played a vital role in keeping the Kashmir dispute alive on the UN agenda.”
Geelani slammed Pakistan’s recent decision of granting Gilgit and Baltistan the status of a provisional province. He said it represents a major shift in Pakistan’s so far consistent policy. He first praised the allegiance of Pakistan in remaining consistent to Kashmir policy which was in lieu with UN agenda till now. “But the recent move to alter the status quo will only further the interests of India.”
Lamenting, Geelani said this decision will not only weaken Pakistan’s position but also compromise the ‘ongoing struggle of self determination of Kashmir.’
He said that the people of Gilgit and Baltistan may have some genuine grievances and concerns and Pakistan is duty bound to address them, the purpose could have been efficiently and sufficiently served without altering the status quo.
Heavily flaking the decision, Geelani said that the move is laden with disastrous consequence and Pakistan risks not only weakening its position and losing moral high ground but also demoralising Kashmiri people and debilitating their ongoing struggle for the right to self determination.
He claimed that the unfortunate and unwise move is particularly more determinantal in the context of India’s August 5, 2019 aggression. With this move, he said that Pakistan is handing India a baton to beat it with.
Geelani urges the Government of Pakistan to reconsider the decision regarding the provincial status to Gilgit and Baltistan, keeping in view the repercussions it would have on the future of Kashmir as a dispute and consequently on its final settlement.
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It looks like China and Pakistan are going to join forces to put pressure on India. The Chinese have outmaneuvered the Indian military in Ladakh. The Indians are literally fighting an uphill battle at 15,000′ with no infrastructure to supply or protect their troops. The people in Azad Kashmir should easily assimilate into Pakistan, leaving what? People disappearing in Srinagar, pellet guns, and displacement and integration of people by force. They will want their plebescite too, after those in Azad Kashmir have voted. Then you have the Sikhs and other local groups that want independence from India. All of this instability – in India – was caused by the unwise decision to amend the constitution to revoke Article 370. What a shame.