All Parties Hurriyat Conference Chairman of Kashmir Chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday said that elections can’t change the disputed nature of Jammu and Kashmir.
Mirwaiz, who was under house arrest since September ,was allowed by the authorities to offer Friday prayers at the historic Jamia mosque in Srinagar.
“Hurriyat’s stand has always been clear about elections that we are not against it. But when you say that elections are for the resolution of the Kashmir issue, we are against that. Election can be for bijli, pani aur Sadak (electricity, water and roads) but it can’t resolve the Kashmir issue,” Mirwaiz said in his address.
Hurriyat Chairman said that elections and the Kashmir issue are two separate things.
“Elections are for getting civic amenities and we are talking about resolving the Kashmir issue,” he said.
Mirwaiz emphasised that they have always sought a peaceful resolution to Kashmir.
“Hurriyat is the representative forum seeking engagement with the people’s sentiment for resolution, through dialogue,” he said.
APHC Chairman said as long as a part of J&K is in India, a part of it in Pakistan, and some part of it with China both India and Pakistan claim it in totality.
“?The powers involved in the conflict don’t look at Kashmir as a humanitarian issue, which has consumed generations of Kashmiris- yearning for a solution and closure to the conflict. We want an end to the pain of the families divided across the LoC since 1947, and post 1990 the suffering of a Kashmiri Pandit community that migrated. This pulpit has always stood for humanity and rights of all people of J&K,” he said.
Mirwaiz warned that not resolving the Kashmir issue could lead to wider conflict in the region.
“Look at the Middle East, how the Palestinian conflict is consuming the region and destroying it and putting the entire world at a great risk . The military domination of Israel and its refusal to resolve the conflict in a just and peaceful manner by accepting the natural rights of Palestinians over their land, and instead choosing force and military might, has made the whole region vulnerable . These military powers just want an arms market, so conflicts are a great opportunity for them,” Mirwaiz said
“We don’t want such a situation in this region. That is why we repeatedly advocate peaceful means of outreach and dialogue. We already have the previous framework of dialogue from ( Atal Bihari) Vajpayee’s and Manmohan Singh’s time to begin with and work around,” he added.
Mirwaiz also took a dig at the National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party – for not uniting for the polls that concluded recently.
“?the kind of disempowerment and dispossession that we have witnessed since August 2019 , people of J&K had some hope that it (elections) may give them some relief and say in their daily matters . It is unfortunate that at this crucial juncture, the regional political organisations and individuals who contested could not come together and jointly fight for the great challenges before people,” he said.
Mirwaiz hoped that after the election results, these political parties and individuals would rise to the occasion and collectively prioritize people’s interests and safeguarding of their rights, rather than personal and party interests.
Mirwaiz also cautioned the authorities against any attempt to change the important days in the Islamic calendar of J&K.
