Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Tuesday defended his remarks about the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), stating they were made with honesty and sincerity. He asserted that no propaganda or vested interests could weaken the historic and emotional bond between Pakistan and Kashmir.
Minister's Statement on Social Media
“My remarks about the crisis in AJK were frank and honest, Alhamdolillah. Those who have sinister agendas may try to twist them but they cannot take Kashmir out of me or out from Pakistan or take Pakistan out of Kashmir,” he wrote on social media platform X. Asif emphasised that the sacrifices of Kashmiris who crossed over into Pakistan in October 1947 were recorded in history and etched in memory forever.
Commitment to Kashmir Cause
“The struggle of Kashmiris in Indian-Occupied Kashmir against Indian occupation is a saga of martyrdom and lives spent in jails over the last 78 years. Pakistan’s commitment to the Kashmir cause is witnessed in the blood of our martyrs in five wars, and in our principled stand on a plebiscite and self determination as per UN resolutions,” he said. The minister highlighted that external agenda-driven voices from AJK against Pakistan and the Kashmir cause must be responded to in the strongest possible terms.
Recognising Sacrifices
“There are Kashmiris who paid the price for migration, and those who continue to pay the price in IIOJK. The people of AJK, who live here in peace and tranquility for many decades guarded by soldiers from all over Pakistan, and surely brave hearts from AJK too, need to recognise the sacrifices of Kashmiris of IIOJK and the Muhajirs of 1947 and later years. Belittling these sacrifices is negating the Kashmir cause,” Asif said. He added, “In my humble opinion, Kashmiriat is defined by the sacrifices and struggles waged over almost eight decades by Pakistanis including Kashmiris and all others, not by birth certificates.”
