Islamabad: The Vice Chairman of Jammu Kashmir National Front Altaf Hussain Wani while denouncing in strong terms the illegal detention of party chairman Nayeem Ahmed Khan has said that Indian authorities since long have been using arbitrary arrests, house detentions as a weapon of war to suppress voice of dissent in the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Since by elections for two parliamentary seats are around the corner India has intensified its crackdown on Hurriyat leaders”, Wani said in a statement issued here today. He maintained that suppressing the voice of dissent was a manifestation of frustration on the part of the government of India. He however stated that such undemocratic and brutal measures could not deter the Kashmiri leaders from continuing their just struggle for their right to self-determination.
Terming Indian authorities actions as a flagrant violations of basic human rights he said that India that keeps harping on high values of democracy must know the fact that choking space for political dissent was against the true spirit of democracy and democratic norms.Â
He said that if Indians really believed in democracy why they don’t allow Kashmiris to exercise their birth right that happens to be the cardinal principle of the UN charter. India he said should shun its rigidity on Kashmir dispute and create a conducive atmosphere for the peaceful resolution of the lingering dispute. Suppressing voices of dissent and holding elections under the shadow of gun he said was nothing but a farcical exercise on the part of government of India to befool the international community. The only way to ensure durable peace in the South Asian region he said lies in the peaceful settlement of Kashmir dispute
