Fatima Jinnah was Against Ceasefire in Kashmir

Lahore, Oct 25: Madar-i-Millat Fatima Jinnah was against the ceasefire in Kashmir and she wanted the Kashmiris to continue their freedom struggle.

This was stated by a former judge of the Supreme Court, Raja Afrasiab Khan, on Friday night. He was speaking at a meeting on the subject of "Madar-i-Millat and Kashmir", organised by the Nazaria-i-Pakistan Foundation and the Pakistan Movement Workers Trust at their auditorium in connection with the current Madar-i-Millat year.

Raja Afrasiab said that Kashmir was a matter of life and death for Pakistan as its survival depended on the rivers from Kashmir. He said that an American scholar had said in 1954 that no nuclear or hydrogen bomb could bring as much destruction as diversion of the Kashmir rivers for Pakistan. That was the reason the Quaid-i-Azam had rightly described Kashmir as the jugular vein of Pakistan.

He said that the people of the Jammu and Kashmir wanted to accede to Pakistan for which purpose they had given great sacrifices and were continuing their struggle braving the atrocities of the brutal forces of India.

The former judge of the Supreme Court said that the Muslim population of the provinces which were part of India had also participated in the independence movement and the Bengali Muslims had marched together with them to achieve Pakistan.

He said that Bengali Muslim never wanted separation but they were forcibly got separated from Pakistan under an international conspiracy hatched by the big power in collusion with India.

He said that both America and former Soviet Union wanted separation of East Pakistan. He said that Pakistan had been achieved through a democratic process as a result of the heavy mandate of the Muslims of the subcontinent for a separate homeland.

Raja Afrasiab thought that the main cause of the separation of East Pakistan in 1971 was the imposition of martial law by Ayub Khan and the rigging of his presidential election to defeat Madar-i-Millat.

He said that even now democracy was essential for the stability of the country.

In his presidential remarks, Shaikh Rafique Ahmad said that it was great a honour for him to preside over the mammoth public meeting outside Mochi Gate when Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah visited Lahore in connection with her election campaign. He said that he also had accompanied Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah in her election tour of the country.

He recalled that in the elections of 1945, the All India Muslim League had won 130 out of 132 seats of Bengal Assembly, 32 out of 64 seats of Sindh Assembly while other parties bagged 32 seats.

He paid rich tribute to the freedom fighters of Kashmir and Palestine and said that the day was not far when they would succeed and get freedom.

Courtesy:

Dawn, Lahore, October 26,2003