Kashmir dispute: Hizb commander rejects Indian offer for talks

Syed Salahuddin says only tripartite talks could resolve the longstanding issue

MUZAFFARABAD: The United Jihad Council (UJC) Chairman Syed Salahuddin has rejected New Delhi’s announcement to hold talks with ‘all stakeholders’ in occupied Kashmir, saying that if it had been sincere, it would have appointed a politician rather than a retired intelligence officer as interlocutor.

“We want tripartite talks involving Pakistan, India and Kashmiris. If India is sincere in talks, first it should accept three parties to the dispute; declare Kashmir a disputed territory; and talk to the All Parties Hurriyet Conference (APHC) leaders in IOK,” he said on Thursday.



Salahuddin, who is also supreme commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen (HuM), was addressing a press conference at the Centre Press Club along with other commanders of Kashmiri freedom fighting organisations.

“More than 150 times bilateral talks between Pakistan and India have failed to settle the Kashmir dispute as the Indian offer has never been based on sincerity,” Salahuddin said, adding that only tripartite talks were a solution to the longstanding dispute.

He said New Delhi appointed a former Intelligence Bureau officer Dineshwar Sharma as its interlocutor to show to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson that it was holding talks with Kashmiris. “However, this is an Indian attempt to hoodwink the world community,” he added.

Salahuddin said India’s National Intelligence Agency (NIA) in wee hours of Thursday raided residence of his son, Shahid Yousaf, in IOK’s Budgam area to create fear among his family members.

“But Indians should keep in mind that Kashmiris will never surrender their right to self-determination and there is zero chance of a compromise on our legitimate struggle,” he added.

He called braid chopping another tactic of the Indian military establishment being used with the support of political leadership of India and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

“Braid chopping first started by the RSS with the support of Indian army and intelligence agencies in Baderwah Jammu and now they use it in Kashmir as a tool of psychological warfare,” he added.

Sharing details of the land forcibly usurped by the Indian army in the valley, the UJC chairman said more than 28 lakh kanals of agricultural land were under the control of Indian forces in IOK.

Salahuddin said since the beginning of the Kashmir freedom movement in late eighties, more than 115,00 Kashmiris had been martyred, 8,000 of which were killed in custody. “There are at least 23,000 widows and 108,00 orphans in Kashmir while 11,000 women were raped by Indian forces,” he added.



The UJC chairman said following martyrdom of Burhan Wani in June last year, about 9,000 Kashmiris had been injured by pallets and 300 of them lost the vision. He said there were more than 6,000 unmarked graves in IOK.

Sharing the success of the Kashmiri freedom fighters, Salahuddin said during the last 28 years, three serving major generals and 37,000 Indian soldiers were killed in IOK. “India is expanding its military infrastructure in Kashmir to convert Muslim majority into a minority.”

He rejected the latest census saying the Indian census department deliberately showed a decline in Muslim population in Jammu and Ladakh regions. There is no room for separate colonies of 13 lakh west Pakistani refugees in Kashmir and this all is being done to change demography of IOK.

He said the UJC welcomes Kashmri Pundits in their ancestral areas not in Israel-style colonies to create a divide in the Kashmiris communal harmony. Sallauhdin further said Sanik colonies was another move to change Kashmiri's demography which we would never allow.

He said that India is working to break the economy of IOK. Since July 8, 2016 till now Kashmiris suffered 20000 crore loss in terms of fruits, tourism and handicrafts.

UJC chairman claimed that it was New Delhi strategy to appoint non-state subjects on the key posts in Kashmir which is another example of exploitation of IOK Muslim bureaucracy.