LAHORE - In a show of solidarity with the oppressed people of Kashmir, thousands of people Wednesday thronged The Mall chanting anti-India slogans and demanding liberation of Kashmir from the Indian yoke.
The event turned out to be a huge public gathering, also attended by Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar, provincial ministers, members of the provincial assembly, PTI leaders, workers and people from all walks of life.
The atmosphere echoed with the slogans:
”Long live Pakistan’ and Kashmir will become Pakistan”. Anthems of Pakistan and Azad Kashmir were aired one minute silence was also observed as a token of solidarity with the innocent Kashmiris undergoing worst kind of brutalities at the hands of Indian forces.
Khateeb Bashahi Mosque Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad led a special prayer for the success of freedom struggle of Kashmiri people and end to Indian occupation.
Addressing the rally, Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar regretted that India, which claimed to be the biggest democracy in the world was blatantly violating all democratic norms in Occupied Kashmir. “India has badly demeaned its democratic and secular identity by abrogating articles 35A and 370 of the Indian constitution”, he said.
Buzdar condemned continued lockdown of Kashmir for the last 185 days and demanded of the world powers to use their influence on India to salvage the Kashmiris.
“Today, the entire nation has given a strong message to the world that Pakistan firmly stands with the Kashmiris. Pakistan and Kashmir are Siamese twins and this peaceful agitation is writing on the wall for the Modi government”, he remarked.
Usman Buzdar expressed his optimism that victory will be the fate of the Kashmiris very soon. “Prime Minister Imran Khan has fought the case of Kashmir with absolute courage as no other leader had raised a strong voice in support of the Kashmiris before”, he said.
Chief Minister recalled that Quaid-e-Azam had termed Kashmir as the jugular vein of Pakistan and present government could not deviate from the Kashmir cause. “Pakistan will always be standing with the Kashmiris in their difficult time. Pakistanis’ hearts beat in unison with their Kashmiri brethren”, he said.
Usman Buzdar emphasized that Lahore had a special relation with Kashmir and the strong relationship between Pakistan and Kashmir was unbreakable.
President PTI Central Punjab Ejaz Chaudhary, Zaheer Abbas Khokhar and member legislative assembly of Azad Kashmir Ghulam Mohyuddin Dewan also spoke on this occasion.
Provincial ministers Raja Basharat, Fayyaz-ul-Hassan Chauhan, MPAs including Uzma Kardaar, Mussarat Jamshed Cheema, Sadia Sohail, Nadeem Bara, Mahinder Paal Singh, Chief Secretary, additional chief secretaries, administrative secretaries, PTI leaders including Imtiaz Warraich, Amir Gujjar, Mian Akram Usman, Mehar Wajid, Ejaz Diyal and Shoaib Siddiqui were also prominent on the occasion.
