MUZAFFARABAD: Kashmiri activists staged a forceful anti-India demonstration, denouncing New Delhi’s attempts to turn the Muslim majority in occupied Jammu and Kashmir into a minority, disempower Muslims through the Waqf Amendment Bill, and escalate hostilities against Pakistan.

Organised by Pasban-e-Hurriyat Jammu and Kashmir (PHJK)— an organisation of post-1989 migrants from India-held territory — the protest drew a large crowd, including women, who gathered at Burhan Wani Chowk in the state capital.

Waving black flags, the demonstrators protested what they termed India’s “terrorist regime”.

They also held national flags of Pakistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), along with large banners condemning Indian atrocities in the disputed region.

One banner read: “The BJP government cannot hide the war crimes committed in Kashmir by killing unarmed Indian civilians.”

Another, held by women protesters, declared: “The Waqf Amendment Bill is a tactic to disempower 300 million Muslims in India, including Kashmir, in every respect.”

Chanting pro-freedom, pro-Pakistan, and anti-India slogans, the protesters also burned a banner bearing images of Indian PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, each marked with red crosses.

Later, the crowd marched from Burhan Wani Shaheed Chowk to Ghari Pan Chowk, continuing to raise slogans along the way.

Addressing the protesters, PHJK Chairman Uzair Ahmed Ghazali and other speakers said the Pahalgam incident was a deliberate ploy by the Modi regime to undermine the strong protest movement of Indian Muslims against the Waqf Amendment Bill, to defame Pakistan and Kashmiris and to damage held Kashmir’s economy.

The speakers demanded that the UN form an independent commission to investigate not only the Pahalgam incident, but also earlier massacres such as Chattisinghpora and Pathribal, as well as ongoing war crimes by Indian occupation forces.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2025