Kashgil News Desk
The text of Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah’s historic speech of 1975, the first Prime Minister of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir and former Chief Minister and leader, has come to light, in which he took a categorical and strong stand on Pakistan’s historical policies regarding Kashmir, the 1947 tribal invasion and the right of self-determination of the Kashmiri people.
1947 invasion and bloodshed:
Sheikh Abdullah, in his speech, severely criticized Pakistan and said that if tribals had not been sent in 1947 to massacre Kashmiris in Baramulla and Muzaffarabad and attempts had not been made to impose decisions by force, history and geography would have been completely different today.
He referred to Muzaffarabad leader Master Abdul Aziz and said that his only sin was that he had given shelter to Hindu and Sikh minorities and opposed the killings committed in the guise of Islam, but he was riddled with bullets.
Questions on the right to self-determination and Pakistani occupation:
Sheikh Abdullah clarified that Kashmiris had been determined to decide their own destiny since 1931. “We had told the Pakistani representatives that the right to decide Kashmir belongs only to the Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims here, but Pakistan wanted to forcefully become the master of our destiny.”
Expressing concern over the drama of UN resolutions, he asked whether the UN resolutions that Pakistan mentions have provided the right to self-determination or independence to the 1.5 million Kashmiris living in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir (Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan)? “If Pakistan had given dignity and freedom to the Kashmiris under its control, we would have believed in their intentions.”
Pointing out the resource grab and exploitative policy:
Shaikh Abdullah, while exposing Pakistan’s objectives, said that Pakistan has no concern with the welfare of the Kashmiri people, but rather it needs the forests, waters and geographical beauty of Kashmir. He said that the Kashmiri people will not allow anyone to make Kashmir their luxury like the oppressive rulers of the past.
This statement of Sheikh Abdullah clearly indicates the historical intervention of the Pakistani state in the region and its exploitative attitude towards the rights of the Kashmiris.
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