India Conspiring to change the population ratio in occupied Kashmir : AJK President
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Washington: India is conspiring to change the population ratio in the Indian Occupied Kashmir with an ulterior motive to harm Kashmiris' freedom struggle, President Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Masood Khan said here on Wednesday, calling on the United States and the international community to intervene and prevent the Indian government from committing gross human rights violations in the disputed territory.
Addressing a press conference at the end of his visit to Washington, the AJK President said that the Western nations and the United States should not let themselves hoodwinked by India which was using its so-called economic potential and its strategic location to blackmail them into silence and close their eyes to the brutalities there.
"The purpose of my visit here was to awaken the world consciousness and remind them of their obligations toward the plight of the innocent Kashmiri people," the AJK President said, adding that e are not here to beg for freedom. We will continue to give every sacrifice to achieve our goal".
The AJK President drew the world attention towards India's planned move to change the population ratio in the held-Kashmir and said that in 1947, Kashmiri Muslims made up nearly 63% of the total population in Jammu which has now come down to 33%.
"In addition to genocide of the innocent Kashmiris , Indian authorities are bringing Hindus and non-Muslimse from outside Jammu and Kashmir and settling them there with an ulterior motive to turn Kashmiri Muslims into minority."
He said such tactics were in violation of the international law and the Geneva convention and the United Nations must take note of it and stop India from resorting to such moves.
The AJK President, however, made it clear that the Kashmiri people will not let the Indian authorities to achieve their nefarious designs and will approach every world forum and render every sacrifice to win their birth right to self-determination.
Sardar Masood Khan said that the bilateral dialogue process between Pakistan and India has not produced any results in the past 30 years and, while he was not opposed to the bilateral dialogue, he expected little out of it.
"The United Nations and the world powers must act to resolve this lingering dispute which has claimed lives of tens of thousands of innocent Kashmiri lives."
The AJK President said that while India was using its so-called economic potential to silent the world, Pakistan must make itself economically strong to counter the Indian propaganda. He said Pakistan must have a political stability to be able to effectively counter India at political and diplomatic levels.
The AJK President stated that when Indian Prime Minister Modi came to power, he vowed to resort to ater aggression" to create power shortages and force Pakistan to submit to its will. That, he said, would never happen and alluded to several projects being executed under CPEC that will increase supplies to the national grid.
Sardar Masood Khan said that under CPEC, two hydel projects were being executed in the AJK that will combine produce up to 9000 MW of electricity. He said, currently AJK produces 1400 MW of electricity and provides about 1100 MW to Pakistan's national grid. After the completion of these project, AJK would be able to add up to 7,000 MW of electricity to the national grid, he added.
The AJK President talking about the improving economic situation in the area said every year tens of thousands of tourists visit AJK and contribute to the economic activity there. He asked the overseas Pakistanis and Kashmiris, including those in the United States, to invest in AJK and help thwart the Indian propaganda that AJK was making no progress.
Referring to the Indian allegations of Pakistan carrying out terrorist activities in the Indian Occupied Kashmir, he said it was rather India which was engaged in destabilizing activities in Pakistan. He said that what was happening in IOK was not terrorism but a valiant freedom struggle being waged by valiant Kashmiri people to throw off the Indian yoke.
The AJK President said that Pakistan and Kashmir are inseparable and incomplete without each other. He said that those who talk about the third option, it is necessary that a referendum be held under the UN resolutions and in line with the given parameters in these resolutions to let people decide their future and with whom they want to go.
