New Delhi (NVI): An overwhelming majority of local people of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan want freedom from Pakistani occupation and India should support them in realising this objective, a senior political leader from the region has said.
Sajjad Raja, Chairman of National Equality Party of Pakistan-occupied Jammu Kashmir Gilgit Baltistan (NEPJKGBL), also says that Pakistan is imparting training to terrorists at camps in PoJK, funding them and sending them across the Line of Control (LoC) to create violence and disturbances in Jammu and Kashmir (on the Indian side).
Raja says Pakistan has no love for Kashmiris and the real motive is to grab the natural resources of entire Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Asserting that people of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan want freedom, he said a journalist of PoJK, Tanveer Ahmed, conducted a survey which revealed that over 73 per cent of locals do not want to live with Pakistan. The survey involved detailed interviews of 10,000 people across all districts and tehsils of PoJK, he said.
“Pakistani occupation is not accepted by general public (in PoJK) as Pakistan does not give any sort of rights to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan is interested only in our natural resources. Pakistan has decided to grab these resources at the cost of our people and cost of our dignity and identity and our well being,” the Kashmiri political leader said.
About the Kashmiri Valley, he said Pakistan has bought some people there and “installed puppets”, through whom it sends money and arms there from PoJK to create disturbances and “to create false propaganda that Kashmiris don’t want to live with India”.
As one who has witnessed Pakistani brutalities, Raja advised his Kashmiri brethren in the Valley not to follow people like Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Yasin Malik and think about their own well-being and economic future.
He said Pakistan in no manner stands for Islam, as it claims, and that this fact was realised by the people of Bangladesh, who decided to separate 50 years back.
The Hurriyat Conference is funded by Pakistan and over the last 30 years, it has been working for the Pakistani objectives and motives. “I would request general public not to follow these people, who stand for Pakistan.”
About Pakistan’s support to cross-border terrorism, the native of PoJK said terror camps are being run by Pakistan in the woods on the mountains of PoJK, away from the general public. “But I have seen (the camps) with my own eyes (in PoJK). This is a fact which everyone knows. People are sent from PoJK with arms and funds to J&K to fight there. Pakistani establishment gives training here (PoJK) and KPK (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and sends them across the LoC,” he said.
About Pakistan’s consistent denial of existence of training camps, Raja said these denials are false. “We as people of Kashmir know it… Pakistan is sponsoring terrorism, Pakistan is funding terrorism, Pakistan is creating violence and hatred in J&K, just to capture resources. That is the Pakistani agenda… Pakistan is sending armed militiamen and terrorists to fight with Indian army and security agencies. This is not something hidden,” he said.
When referred to India’s demand that Pakistan should vacate territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan under its illegal occupation, Raja said he supports it.
He said India, under the Accession Treaty signed by Maharaja Hari Singh in October 1947, has the moral duty to protect property and well being of people of entire Jammu and Kashmir. “India should support people of PoJK who do not want to live under Pakistani occupation, so that Jammu and Kashmir can reunite.”
-ARK
