Sindh to rally for Kashmir on Black Day

PPP announces march from Peoples Chowrangi to Mazar-e-Quaid, minute's silence, awareness drives

The Sindh government will observe Kashmir Black Day on Tuesday with rallies and events across the province to express solidarity with the Kashmiri people and highlight their right to self-determination, government spokespersons said on Monday.

Speaking at a joint press conference at the Directorate of Social Media of the Information Department in Clifton, spokespersons Saadia Javed, Sumita Afzal Syed, Syeda Tahseen Abidi, Sukhdev Hemnani and Mustafa Baloch outlined the planned activities.

Saadia said October 27, 1947, marked the beginning of Indian aggression in Kashmir, adding that the Kashmiri people had been struggling for their right to self-determination for decades. She said the Pakistan Peoples Party had consistently raised the Kashmir issue at international forums.

She also said that religious minorities, including Muslims, faced discrimination in India, citing reports of incidents targeting minorities from Kashmir to Manipur. She said protest programmes would be held across Sindh to mark the day.

Sumita said the observance would begin at the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam, where participants would observe a minute of silence. A rally would be taken out from Peoples Chowrangi to the mausoleum, led by provincial ministers Nasir Hussain Shah and Syed Ali.

She said rallies would also be held at divisional headquarters, while schools, colleges and universities across the province would organise debates and competitions to raise awareness about the Kashmir issue and express solidarity with its people. Mustafa said the protests would remain peaceful and aim to convey that the Kashmiri people were not alone. He said Pakistanis stood with them and that restrictions on internet access and the denial of basic rights in Kashmir could not be ignored.

Hemnani questioned India's claims of being the world's largest democracy, citing concerns over the human rights situation in occupied Kashmir. CM Murad Ali Shah reaffirmed the provincial government's support for the Kashmiri people's right to self-determination, saying October 27, 1947, marked a "black day" in their history when Indian troops landed in Srinagar.

In a message issued ahead of Kashmir Black Day, Shah said the Kashmiri people had faced decades of oppression, injustice and human rights violations but their resolve for freedom remained undiminished. He paid tribute to the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir for their continued struggle for self-determination, saying restrictions, prolonged lockdowns and alleged human rights abuses had failed to weaken their determination.

Shah said the PPP and the Sindh government had consistently maintained that the Kashmiri people had the right to decide their own future. He recalled that former prime ministers Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto had raised the Kashmir issue at international forums and advocated the right to self-determination.