Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has asked Pakistan to ensure that India "fulfils its commitment to hold a plebiscite" in Jammu and Kashmir, as part of the United Nations resolution on the vexed issue, and allow the people to decide their fate.
Geelani, who held an over two-hour meeting with visiting Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Muhammad Khan here, told UNI that conducting plebiscite in the state was the only way to restore peace in the state.
"India must give the people of Jammu and Kashmir the opportunity to decide their own fate and they must decide on their own whether they want to stay with India or Pakistan," he said.
"India must accept Kashmir as dispute and release all jailed Kashmiris and withdraw its forces from Jammu and Kashmir to make the dialogue meaningful and result-oriented," he said.
Pro-freedom Kashmiri leader rejected all confidence building measures (CBMs) between India and Pakistan on Kashmir, saying the "right to self determination" could not be replaced.
"We reject all the roadmaps being put forward in the name of self-rule, autonomy, status quo or softening of Line of Control (LoC). The UN resolutions, which grant the people of Jammu and Kashmir the right of self-determination, is the only solution to the issue of Kashmir," he added.
About the foreign secretary-level talks, Geelani, who held discussions with a Pakistani official after almost two years, said he did not expect any movement forward on Kashmir. Geelani said he also raised the issue of human rights violations in Kashmir with Khan during the meeting held at the Pakistan House.
Khan, who is holding a series of meetings with Kashmiri leaders, was assisted by several Pakistani officials, including Director-General (South Asia) Jalil Abbas Jilani, Pakistan's outgoing High Commissioner to India Aziz Ahmed Khan and High Commissioner-designate Shahid Malik.
Comments
Comments are closed.