Kashmir atrocities unite PPP, religious groups

Effigy of Indian PM Narendra Modi set on fire outside KPC amid anti-India slogans

KARACHI/HYDERABAD: When it comes to human rights violations in the disputed territory of Kashmir, left- and right-wing parties of Pakistan are on the same page.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam - Fazl (JUI-F), Sunni Action Committee and other parties held separate protests in Karachi and Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah divisions on Friday against the atrocities being committed by the Indian forces in the valley of Kashmir. They were also critical of the indifferent attitude of the Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz-led government over the brutality.



Karachi

A large number of PPP workers and leaders gathered in front of Karachi Press Club, where they set the effigy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on fire and shouted slogans against the Indian security forces.  'Jo Modi ka yaar hai, ghadar hai ghadar hai [The friend of Modi is a traitor]' yelled the protesters led by PPP senators Taj Haider and Saeed Ghani, and information adviser Maula Bux Chandio.



"Innocent Kashmiris are being killed by Indian forces but our prime minister is silent over the atrocities," said Chandio, adding that all the international forums are mum on the issue despite the fact that more than 30 people have been killed and 1,400 injured in the last one week in the region.

PPP's Waqar Mehdi dismissed the Indian government's claim that Kashmir was its internal part. "The killing of innocent Kashmiris is an international issue, which needs to be raised at every forum," he said.

Meanwhile, the JI held protests at 38 points in the city with a major demonstration, led by its Karachi head Naeemur Rehman, held outside Memon Masjid near Boulton Market. "It is useless to expect anything from the United Nations (UN) as they are behaving like slaves of the United States," said Rehman. "The UN has become a paralysed spectator in the case of Kashmir."



Addressing the protesters, Rehman reiterated that the movement for freedom in Kashmir cannot be suppressed with this brutal use of force and arms against unarmed and innocent protesters. He also criticised Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for giving a cold shoulder to the Kashmiris who are fighting 'the war of Pakistan' on their soil.

In a separate demonstration organised by JUI-F outside Karachi Press Club, led by Qari Usman, the protesters condemned the Indian security forces' atrocities in Kashmir and called upon the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to come forward and play its role in easing tensions in the region.

Hyderabad and other divisions

Meanwhile, a number of rallies and demonstrations were organised by the PPP, JI, JUI-F, Sunni Action Committee and other religious parties in many districts of Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah divisions. Condemning the killings of innocent Kashmiri people, the protesters offered symbolic funeral prayers for the martyrs and burnt the Indian flag.

A rally of the PPP, led by Senator Aajiz Dhamra, was organised in Hyderabad. He warned that the PPP will not allow the rulers to make a compromise on the Kashmir issue.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 16^th, 2016.