Unresolved issue: Fazl urges Scottish-style referendum in Kashmir

JUI-F chief says world community biased against the longstanding issue

ISLAMABAD: As the supporters of the Kashmir cause gear up to mark Kashmir Day on February 5, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the chief of his eponymous faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), called for a Scottish-style referendum in the disputed Himalayan state.

Speaking at a seminar organised by the Express Media Group in collaboration with Happilac Paints at a local hotel in Islamabad, the politico-religious leader reminded the international community of its bias against the oldest unresolved issue on the agenda of the United Nations.

Drawing parallels between the Kashmiris’ demand for a plebiscite in the disputed region and the Sept 2014 referendum in Scotland, Maulana Fazl said: “If a referendum can be held in Scotland, then why not in Kashmir?”

He reminded that the Scotland referendum took place after calls for separation from the United Kingdom rose to a crescendo. Scotland would have been an independent country if the referendum results had been in favour of secession, he added.

The JUI-F chief, who has also served as the chairman of the National Assembly Kashmir Committee, said the Kashmiri people have never accepted Indian subjugation. “The Kashmir issue should be resolved according to the wishes of the Kashmiri people in line with the UN Security Council resolutions,” he said.

Maulana Fazl lamented the ‘callous attitude’ of the international community vis-à-vis Kashmir dispute. He said the UN Security Council resolutions on Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, East Timor and Sudan were immediately implemented by the international community, but the UN resolutions on Kashmir were still pending.

Commenting on India’s aspiration for a permanent berth on the UN Security Council which was also supported by US President Barak Obama, the JUI-F chief said: “A country which is not implementing the UN resolutions dreams of becoming a permanent membership of the Security Council.”

Maulana Fazl said that India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was a communal group, which was dividing Kashmir on a Hindu-Muslim basis. He urged the government to keep a close eye on the rapidly unfolding circumstances and formulate an effective foreign policy to counter the new challenges posed by India.

Other speakers at the seminar included Information Minister Senator Pervaiz Rashid, President Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Muhammad Yaqub, AJK’s former prime minister Sardar Atique, Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mian Muhammad Aslam, JUI Azad Kashmir chief Maulana Saeed Yousuf and Editor of Express Forum Ajmal Sattar Malik.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2rd, 2015.