24 November 2004	Wednesday	11 Shawwal 1425

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ISLAMABAD, Nov 23: Naeem Ahmed Khan of the National Front and Mushtaqul Islam of the Jammu Kashmir Muslim League have ruled out accepting anything which bypasses the popular will of the Kashmiri people.

Both the leaders told the media in the occupied Kashmir on Tuesday. A statement issued by Chief of the JKML Mushtaqul Islam from Kot Balwal jail quoted him as saying that the Kashmiris would not accept anything except a plebiscite.

The JKML is a constituent of the All-Parties Hurriyat Conference. National Front leader Naeem Ahmad Khan said that Kashmir issue concerned 13 million people and any underhand deal or a sell-out was inconceivable.

Mr Khan, who was recently released after 13 months in jail, said in an interview that Kashmiris had been sacrificing their lives for the right to self-determination. He said that the freedom movement had begun after the people were hurt by the India's decades-long political gimmickries.

Kashmiris' struggle for the right to self-determination could not be bracketed with terrorism, he added. Welcoming the proposal suggested by President Gen Pervez Musharraf for settling the Kashmir dispute, he said: "Options corresponding to the aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir can be considered."

He reiterated that Kashmiris should continue their struggle till freedom from India's hegemony. He stressed that India should acknowledge the disputed status of the Jammu and Kashmir and the sooner it was done, the better it would be for a peaceful and negotiated settlement of the lingering issue

The statement said that this is a critical juncture of Kashmiris' freedom movement and all pro-movement leaders should move unitedly and cautiously, KMS reported. Meanwhile, Mushtaqul Islam said: "The leadership should ... understand that a plebiscite under UN (supervision) is only solution to the Kashmir dispute."

In the meantime, the Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir has criticized the puppet government for failing to stop the incidents of custodial killings, wreckage and plunder, arson and rape by Indian troops in the occupied Kashmir.

A statement issued by the Jamaat condemned the recent burning of homes of two of its workers in Kaoosa and Russoo villages of Budgam district. The Jamaat called for resolving the Kashmir dispute keeping in view the historical perspective in accordance with the aspirations of the people of Kashmir. -APP