If India can’t forget 18 soldiers, how can Kashmiris ignore 6 lakh sacrifices: Geelani

Chairman of Hurriyat Conference (G) Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Sunday hit out at New Delhi accusing it of “giving bad name of cross border infiltration to the legitimate and just struggle of Kashmir for right to self-determination.”
Commenting on PM Narendra Modi’s speech that “18 army jawans will not be forgotten and terrorism is a curse for humanity,” Geelani said in a statement, “We agree that terrorism is a curse. But but what concerns us is the dubious standards of these rulers who have gross contradiction in their words and deeds. When they use or sponsor violence for their own interests, they call it strategy. But if the same goes against their views, they label it as terrorism.”
“In 1971, India by its armed forces architecturally devastated and split a new born state of Pakistan, was that not terrorism? In Sri Lanka LTTE people were operating from the Indian state, was this not terrorism? Mr. Modi’s concern about Balochistan and its interventionist policy has sent tremors across its small neighboring countries,” he said.
“Even in India itself there are hundreds of incidents of terror, mostly against minorities, especially Muslims. Demolition of Babri Masjid, killing of thousands of unarmed Sikhs in retaliation of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, Samjhota Express, Malaygaon, Makkah Masjid massacres are a few of the prominent and ugly slurs of State terrorism,” he said.
The Hurriyat (G) Chairman said, “In this disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India has given a bad name of “Cross Border Infiltration” to our legitimate and just struggle for our basic right, right to self-determination. It has unleashed every arsenal in their armory to crush and curb it through every undemocratic and unethical means and we as a nation are subjected to the worst kind of state terrorism by India.”
Geelani said, “In mid 90s Indian government groomed a hatchery of army sponsored killers, who brutally killed hundreds of Islamists and freedom sympathizers.”
“Their master killer boastfully accepted in November 1995 that he has killed about 500 innocent and unarmed people, was this not state terrorism? After committing such heinous crimes against humanity he was accorded a warm welcome in the power corridors of Delhi. Dr Farooq, after assuming the chief ministerhip in 1996 confessed that this chair was with the virtue and support of this renegade and he is proud of him, isn’t this terrorism?” Geelani questioned.
“Indian agencies legalize and justify the innocent killings in the attire of national security. When India can’t brush aside its 18 armed jawans how can it expect that we as a nation will ever forget and ignore our 6 lakh sacrifices from the last 70 years, particularly 90 youth in the past two and half months,” he said.
“We shall and will fight till end for our sacred and noble mission but the only difference between the occupier and us is that we are weak, oppressed, humiliated, tortured, maimed with no resources and nobody to turn for help,” he said.