Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Sunday claimed that no "selected prime minister" can fight for the Kashmir cause the way a "democracy friendly" premier can.
Addressing a press conference in Skardu, Bilawal said there was no comparison between the military occupation in occupied Kashmir and the undermining of democracy and human rights in Pakistan.Nonetheless, if Pakistan had been investing in democracy and a third "real [democratically elected] government" was in power, they could fight for the Kashmir cause with moral authority, he said.
"No selected prime minister can fight for the Kashmir cause the way a democracy-friendly prime minister can," he said.
Bilawal said it was important that he raises his voice for Kashmir at every possible opportunity while also seeing the reaction of the people.
He said that Pakistanis know that a "historic injustice" is taking place in occupied Kashmir and that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a murderer. However, he added that people also know that Prime Minister Imran Khan does not have the capability or legitimacy to provide the people of occupied Kashmir or Gilgit Baltistan with their rights.
Bilawal asked how the premier could talk about injustice in occupied Kashmir and about media restrictions in the disputed region if he has imposed "historic media restrictions in his own country".
"How can he speak about restrictions of human rights in occupied Kashmir when he has restricted human rights?" he inquired, adding: "How can he speak about democracy in occupied Kashmir when he has led the funeral of democracy in his is own country?"
Earlier, Bilawal has also raised doubts over the government’s sincerity with the Kashmir cause, saying the government was "not supporting the Kashmiris in an effective way".
Read: Bilawal raises doubts over govt’s sincerity with Kashmir cause
On Wednesday, the PPP leader had promised to wage a struggle for realising the democratic rights of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan and to fulfill the commitment made with the region’s people by late prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.Bilawal today said that the people of Gilgit Baltistan have seen that the premier is attacking democracy and human rights in the country."How can a person who is snatching democracy and constitutional and human rights away from us get the people of Gilgit Baltistan their rights?"The PPP leader said that people knew that only the democratic and "real leadership" of Pakistan could grant the people of Gilgit Baltistan their rights and raise their voices for Kashmiris.
While responding to a question about India’s top opposition leaders, including former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, being sent back after they landed in Srinagar on Saturday, Bilawal said that this was very unfortunate.
"What are they hiding from him? If everything is transparent and rights are being granted and they are doing good things [...] then why have you stopped the opposition leader of the country?"
He said that while the politics of Pakistan and India were different there were similarities regarding the democratic and undemocratic approaches used.
The PPP leader said that he had decided to spend Eidul Azha in Muzaffarabad as it was a "very good opportunity to send a message of unity" and after his announcement, the government also announced that they would send someone to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
Bilawal added that the night he reached Muzaffarabad, his aunt, Faryal Talpur was "illegally" shifted from a hospital to jail.
"We feel that the government is trying to antagonise us [...] PPP has seen this in the past and knows how to oppose this."
He said that it would very good if the PTI and the rest of the country gave attention to Gilgit Baltistan the way his party (the PPP) was.
"Right now I feel like PPP is leading from the opposition and the government is playing the role of the opposition in the government," the PPP leader remarked.
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