MUZAFFARABAD: Leaders from both sides of the Line of Control (LoC) have strongly criticized India’s Supreme Court’s recent decision on Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) special status, denouncing it as a ‘dark stain’ on India’s proclaimed democracy.
On Monday, India’s apex court upheld the abrogation and declared that Article 370 of the Constitution was a temporary provision and the move to revoke the special status of Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir was constitutional. The Modi government revoked Article 370 and 35-A in August 2019, stripping Jammu and Kashmir of its special status.
The court’s judgment, previously reserved in September, said that Occupied Kashmir is an integral part of India, having not achieved internal sovereignty after joining the Union.
Responding to the development, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Shah Ghulam Qadir said that the verdict exposed the diverse society of India, now completely dominated by Hindu extremists from the highest judiciary to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Qadir stated, “The people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) have not only given unparalleled sacrifices for any form of statehood since 1947, but they have one prime target, the implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions in the IIOJK.”
He added, “This decision conveys a clear message to Kashmiris globally that nobody in India is willing to provide them political breathing space. Instead, Kashmiris should focus on the international community and present their case to expose Indian state terrorism in the IIOJK.”
Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq labeled the decision as “biased” and affirmed that such verdicts would not deter Kashmiris from their struggle for political rights.
Kashmiri Leaders Demand Right of Self-determination
“The case of the people of Jammu and Kashmir is simple. We demand the world community to provide us the right of self-determination as per the UN resolutions,” Haq added.
Former AJK law secretary Farhat Ali Mir, expressing disappointment over the Indian apex court’s verdict, urged Kashmiris to continue their legitimate political struggle for their birthright guaranteed by the UN Charter.
Former AJK Legislative Assembly member Pir Ali Raza Bukhari deemed the decision a joint consensus of the Modi government and the Supreme Court to marginalize minorities, asserting that it goes against the spirit of the global justice system.
Dr. Bukhari called on Kashmiris across the LoC to raise their voices globally for the implementation of the UNSC resolutions.
All-Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Altaf Ahmad Bhat stressed that every Kashmiri was aware of the verdict, emphasizing belief in the UNSC resolutions as the foundation for the political struggle of the Kashmiris, which, according to him, must continue until the day of the plebiscite.
