Pakistan renews call for plebiscite in Kashmir

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (MNTV) — Pakistan’s top civilian leaders on Sunday renewed calls for the implementation of United Nations resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir, urging the international community to press India to reverse its August 2019 actions as the country observed Jan. 5 as Right to Self-Determination Day.

In separate messages, President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the Balochistan chief minister and the president and prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir reiterated Pakistan’s moral, political and diplomatic support for Kashmiris and called for a UN-backed plebiscite to determine the region’s future.

Zardari said Jan. 5 marks the 1949 UN resolution recognizing Kashmir as a disputed territory and affirming the Kashmiri people’s right to decide their future through a free and impartial vote. More than seven decades later, he said, the commitment remains unfulfilled, in violation of the UN Charter and international law.

“The passage of time has neither weakened the validity of UN resolutions nor diminished the legitimacy of the Kashmiri people’s demand for self-determination,” he said.

Sharif said a just settlement of the Kashmir dispute was essential for lasting peace in South Asia.

He urged the international community to call on India to halt what he described as widespread human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir, repeal “draconian laws” and reverse the unilateral steps taken on Aug. 5, 2019, when New Delhi revoked the region’s special status.

“Pakistan will continue to serve as the voice of the Kashmiri people at every available forum,” Sharif said.

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti said the right to self-determination was not a political slogan but a legally binding international commitment that remains unmet. He accused India of violating the Jan. 5, 1949, pledge by maintaining what he called an illegal occupation.

Azad Jammu and Kashmir President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry urged the United Nations to play a more effective role in resolving the dispute in line with Kashmiri aspirations, saying decades of repression had failed to weaken demands for freedom.

AJK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore criticized what he called the UN’s lack of urgency, saying the promised plebiscite remained the world body’s primary responsibility.

Rallies and seminars were held across Azad Jammu and Kashmir and in Islamabad to mark the day. In Muzaffarabad, hundreds marched from Burhan Wani Shaheed Chowk to the UN observers’ office near Domel, carrying placards highlighting alleged rights abuses and demanding a UN-supervised vote.

Addressing the rally, AJK Legislative Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar said the Jan. 5 resolution provided a clear roadmap for resolving the dispute.

Pasban-i-Hurriyat Jammu Kashmir chairman Uzair Ahmed Ghazali called for greater international engagement and the release of political prisoners.

Similar events were held in district headquarters across AJK, while a seminar at Kashmir House in Islamabad drew former AJK presidents, prime ministers and representatives of Kashmiri groups.

At a separate conference organized by the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad, speakers said the relevance of the Jan. 5 resolution had increased since 2019.

Participants accused India of seeking demographic changes in the region and delaying implementation of UN commitments, while urging younger generations to advocate the Kashmiri cause on international platforms.