SRINAGAR, Oct 19: Separatists in revolt-hit Kashmir have called a strike on October 27, the 60th anniversary of the day Indian troops first arrived to take control of the Muslim-majority region.
Syed Ali Geelani, leader of the main separatist alliance All Parties Hurriyat Conference, urged Kashmiris “to observe a complete strike.” “This is the day when India landed its troops without any legal, moral and political justification on the soil of Kashmir, which was a free and sovereign country,” he said in a statement.
Separatists, who want the Himalayan territory to join Pakistan or achieve independence, traditionally mark October 27 as a “black day.” “The struggle will continue to achieve complete freedom from Indian occupation,” Geelani vowed.
Kashmiri militants took up arms against India’s rule in 1989 in a conflict that has claimed over 42,000 lives by official count.—AFP
