SIALKOT: Kashmiri people residing here observed ‘black day’ on Wednesday on the occasion of India’s Independence Day.

The demonstrators wore black armbands and held a peaceful agitation gathering. Addressing the gathering, Jammu and Kashmir Freedom Movement Convener Dr Zahid Ghani Dar said the sacrifices of thousands of innocent Kashmiris would not go to waste, as the region will attain freedom from Indian aggression.

He said peace could never be promoted in South Asia without solving the prolonged issue of Kashmir.

He urged the Pakistan government to adopt a solid policy regarding the dispute with India and criticised the imposition of curfew in India-held Kashmir (IHK), terming it a violation of human rights by the Indian Army.

Dr Dar said freedom was the basic right of every individual that could not be denied. He urged the world community to use its influence to pressurise India to halt the large scale human rights violations, custodial killings and genocide of oppressed Kashmiris.

Meanwhile, local Kashmiris expressed solidarity with the residents of IHK and said that an early peaceful solution to the Kashmir dispute was vital for sustainable peace in the subcontinent.

AWARDS: Poet Allama Iqbal’s grandson, Muneeb Iqbal, distributed awards among families of local activists of the Pakistan Movement.

An awards distribution ceremony was held at Iqbal Manzil — the birthplace of Allama Iqbal — under the auspices of Bazm-i-Iqbal on Wednesday. Bazm-i-Iqbal President Nasir Shamim Khan Lodhi presided over the event.

The awardees included Syed Mureed Hussain Shah, Altaf Ahmed Shah, Malik Munawar Hayyat, Khawaja Inamul Haq and Altaf Ahmed Butt.

Muneeb highlighted the significance of the role played by activists of Pakistan Movement.

Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2018