KL Report
SRINAGAR
Hizb-ul-Mujahideen supremo and United Jihad Council chief Syed Sallah-ud din Thursday requested the pro-freedom camp to unanimously decide whether polls held in Jammu and Kashmir should be termed as ‘an issue’ or a ‘non issue’ and reach out to the people with a unanimous decision.
In a telephonic interview with Kashmir News Service (KNS), the UJC chief said his request to the pro-freedom leadership would be to hold serious deliberations and discussions jointly and on the basis of merit and an argument on the relevance of elections in Jammu and Kashmir. “There are two opinions within the pro-freedom camp on elections in Jammu and Kashmir. For one group it is an issue and for another it is a non issue. Both the arguments are being supported by the reasons and logic thereof. It has created confusion within the minds of the people and same has to end without any delay. As far as the militant leadership is concerned, we believe that participation in the electoral fray means betrayal with the sacrifices and the resistance movement of Kashmiris. At the same time whatever the decision is taken by the Huriyat over the issue we will abide by the same,” Sallah-ud-din said.
The Hizb chief maintained that polls held in Jammu and Kashmir would in no way be the substitute to the plebiscite and those who have voted in the recent polls have themselves asserted that they have not cast their votes against the resistance movement of Kashmir.
“People voted for day-to-day issues and have categorically said that their vote was not against the Kashmir freedom movement and that they want to end their local problems by voting,” the UJC chief observed, adding that he would again appeal the people of Jammu and Kashmir not to participate in the election process in any way.
“Roads, ration and electricity in no way could be more important than the freedom. Roads and electricity could be provided in any way to people whosoever is appointed. People must remember that resources of Kashmir worth thousands of crores are being plundered by the government of India,” he alleged.
Sallah-ud-Din said that Government of India must remember before exploiting Kashmir elections at the international level that people have not voted against the freedom movement ‘but were coerced to vote in the presence of eight lakh troops.’ “Polls held in the presence of eight lakh troops have no credibility at all. We have the credible reports that people were coerced in various areas to vote. The Hurriyat leadership was detained and was not allowed to make people aware about the serious consequences of their participation in polls. Even though, people have not voted against the movement but under a compulsion,” UJC chief claimed.
He added that there were various other factors also behind peoples’ participation in polls. “In most of the areas, people were threatened and terror was unleashed which compelled them to vote. At the same time I have heard people that they have voted to end their day to day woes. People were also of the opinion that they wanted to end the regime of corruption in the state,” Sallah-ud-Din claimed. “In the Chinab valley of the Jammu region, people were compelled to vote so that they could keep communal forces at bay. People there had apprehensions that if they would not vote, the communal forces would dominate them at large.”
He said that via the social media platform, the youth and others whose were made aware about the disastrous outcome of the poll participation didn’t vote but the curbs imposed upon the Pro freedom camp did not allow it to aware people about the negative results of the poll participation.
The UJC chief also said that the united face of the Huriyat and other pro- freedom groups during the poll boycott would have carried much weight and greater impact on ground. “I know that they would have been detained and lodged in jails but still a clear message would have gone to the masses that Huriyat has jointly propagated the election boycott program,” he said.
Appealing people to observe Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Valley as a ‘black day’, Sallah-ud-Din said, “It has been BJP’s agenda to create uncertainty with Pakistan so that its ends could be served during polls. The situation at SAARC at present, the tension at borders, the cease fire violations and killing innocents there, is an election strategy of BJP during polls. The party creates hatred against Pakistan to woo Hindu voters.”
