Protests remind India of Kashmir occupation on Republic Day
Protests and demonstrations were held across the UK on Friday to remind India of its illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir on its Republic Day.
Pro-Kashmir freedom demonstrations were held in Birmingham, Luton, Walsall ,Bradford and Glasgow where supporters of the Kashmir cause demanded fulfilment of the promises made to the Kashmiris by the United Nations and the international community.
The protestors marked India’s Republic Day as a ‘black day’. They said that New Delhi had “no right to celebrate its constitution day when it was illegally occupying Kashmir”. They accused India of violating the international laws.
“Celebrating Republic Day is a matter of pride for any nation, especially those who gained independence from colonialism but in case of India, this day is another blot on the country since it is violating international law every other day by continuing to occupy Kashmir,” Fahim Kayani, the president of the Tehreek-e-Kashmir UK, said.
Kayani, who also leads a UK-based international rights group, recalled how India “has turned into a neo-colonial power by occupying Kashmir, using its same constitution which it is celebrating this day.”
“Brazen and violent violation of Kashmiri rights and dignity as well as UN Charter by India in Kashmir demands that international community must question legality of Indian constitution, whether it meets international standards,” said Kayani.
Muhammad Ghalib, who leads the Tehreek-e-Kashmir Europe, said that Kashmiris were not against the Indians celebrating their constitutional rights, but they wanted to “strike Indian conscience”.
“Their state, which has taken an ugly shape with saffronisation, is brutally suppressing basic rights of the Kashmiris, who have been promised right to self-determination by none other than the UN,” Ghalib said.
Kashmiris, Ghalib added, “would also like to enjoy constitutional rights but only after they are allowed to decide their future through a UN-sponsored plebiscite which India is blocking.”
Thus, he said: “Indians have no right to celebrate their constitutional rights, while occupying, colonising and suppressing basic, fundamental rights as granted by international laws and the UN to Kashmiris.”