ISLAMABAD - Pakistan People’s Party chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari yesterday said that 5th July 1977 was a black day in Pakistan’s history when the first directly elected government was toppled in a coup by Ziaul Haq. His comments came as the party observed ‘black day’ across the country to condemn the toppling of the PPP-led government in 1977. The PPP founder, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto – then Prime Minister – was arrested and later controversially tried in a murder case. He was executed around two years later.  Bilawal said Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was “Quaid-e-Awam, he was the chairman of the Islamic Summit, he was the founder of nuclear capability of Pakistan and was the leader who gave lands to the landless poor growers, gave rights to the labourers and worked for the poor people of Pakistan.”  He said Ziaul Haq thought that they will finish the ideology of Bhutto by physically eliminating him. “After Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Benazir Bhutto resisted two dictators to complete the incomplete mission of her father. Then the same people martyred Benazir Bhutto thinking that they could finish the ideology of Bhuttos and capture the whole system but they did not know that the leaders of the people live in the hearts and minds of the people,” he said.  The PPP chief added: “They did not know that Jiyalas (die hard workers) of the PPP are steadfast on Bhuttos’ ideology. The Jiyalas are standing firm and are not ready to compromise on Kashmir and will continue the struggle for the people’s rights. The coward rulers and all the puppet parties are afraid of these Jiyalas. The PPP is the only party supported by the people of Kashmir and Pakistan.” Meanwhile, addressing a rally in Nakyal, Bilawal said that the President PPP Azad Jammu Kashmir, Latif Akbar had survived two attacks by the cowards.  “The Muslim Conference attacked him and then the ones who claim that votes should be respected attacked him. Let me tell them that we are well able to defend and the Jiyalas are there to defend their leaders but we will not let you do such politics.

 We will compete with Muslim Conference in Azad Kashmir and the rulers in Islamabad and will defeat all of them in elections. We are the Jiyalas who confronted Zia, (Pervez) Musharraf, terrorists and (Narendra) Modi. We do not invite Modi to our wedding celebrations; do not pray for Modi’s success in elections,” he said. 

Bilawal said the PPP were the Jiyalas who learnt the lesson that “if need be we will fight a thousand years for Kashmir and will shed our blood where the Kashmiris shed their sweat.” 

“We had the leader whose calls for strike were observed by the Kashmiris in the occupied Kashmir as well as the Azad Kashmir. This PM asked “What can I do in the National Assembly when Modi launched a historic attack on Kashmir. The Kashmiri people cannot tolerate this cowardice. The Kashmiris will send a message to the world on 25 July that they do not want any kind of puppet government but a real people’s government that is of the PPP,” he said.

Bilawal said the nation can defeat India by bringing more economic prosperity in AJK than in Occupied Kashmir. “We in the past brought prosperity to the people during our tenure in the government. We increased the salaries of government employees and pensions of the retired elderly people. We will complete the mission of our leaders Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto,” he said. 

He said that his politics will be the politics of truth not like the puppet who promised the sun, moon and stars but made millions unemployed and without their abodes. 

He said only PPP believes in the power of the people. The relations between the Kashmiris and the PPP go back three generations. The people in the other parties are the same people who were disloyal to the mission of Bhuttos and had left the party. 

Bilawal said that he was ready to work with everyone who had ever raised slogan of Jeay Bhutto ever. He offered them to forget the past and prepare for the future. 

“The PPP is the only party which can overcome this economic crisis and can negotiate with China as well as the United States. The victory belongs to the PPP,” he said.