ISLAMABAD, Jan 11: Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Amanullah Khan said on Friday he feared his group could be a target of raids by authorities on Islamic militants, but said he would launch a fresh armed struggle if necessary.
He said his group had a right to fight for independence for Kashmir.
“Now, since it will be an open official decision of the government of Pakistan to clamp down on militants, we may face Pakistan’s wrath,” he told Reuters in an interview.
The JKLF advocates independence for Kashmir, but this policy has not fitted with the approach of Islamabad, which has hoped the region would choose to join Pakistan.
The Kashmiri leader said his pledge to take up arms if necessary was justified.
“We were within our rights because we had failed to convince India peacefully and there was no other way except to resort to armed struggle,” he said.
“If India, Pakistan, or the international community impose a solution on Kashmiris against their will, we will take up arms again,” he said and added, “we will not agree with anybody who says this form of armed struggle is terrorism.”
Non-Kashmiri militants infiltrating across the border from Pakistan had harmed his cause, the JKLF chief said.
He said a non-aligned independent Kashmir was the most reasonable solution because neither India nor Pakistan would be willing to hand over parts of the territory to the other.
“India and Pakistan seem to have agreed to disagree on every aspect of the Kashmir issue except the demand for independence,” he said. “They are both against the independence of Kashmir.”—Reuters
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