London Million March: Thousands seek peaceful resolution of Kashmir

Thousands of people supporting the Kashmir cause came out on the streets of the British capital to express solidarity with the citizens of Kashmir in their decades-long struggle for the right of self-determination.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his sister Aseefa Bhutto Zardari also participated in the rally.
Some miscreants threw bottles at the stage from where the participants of Kashmir Million March were to be addressed.
Former prime minister of Azad Kashmir Barrister Sultan Mehmood said India’s sympathisers tried to sabotage the procession. “We have gathered here to express solidarity with the people of Kashmir and to draw attention of the international community towards Kashmir issue,” Mehmood said, adding that this struggle would continue “till the independence of Kashmir.”
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari attended the Million March to pledge solidarity with the people of Kashmir and to reaffirm his unconditional support for their struggle for self-determination. Bilawal was received by a jubilant crowd who welcomed him on stage.
Bilawal vowed that he will not play partisan politics or diplomatic games with the futures and the lives of the people of Kashmir. The march demanded a peaceful solution to the longstanding Kashmir issue. It started from the Trafalgar Square and concluded at 10 Downing Street to protest against the “human rights violations by Indian forces” in Kashmir. A petition was submitted asking the British government to impress upon India to resolve the Kashmir dispute.
India had objected to Britain allowing the march during the recent visit of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, but London had reiterated its commitment to freedom of speech as well as its reassurance that it was for India and Pakistan to resolve the Jammu and Kashmir issue. In a significant intervention, India’s Deputy High Commissioner Varinder Paul had recently sounded a cautionary note on Indo-UK relations before a London audience comprising Business Secretary Vince Cable.

Previous post Excess rainfall, not cloudbursts caused Kashmir floods: DERS-ISRO study
Next post Shutdown across Kashmir; Restrictions in Srinagar