Imran 'Taliban Khan' misleading everyone, PoK remains launch pad of terrorists: Kashmiri activists at UN

The human right activists from PoK argued 'India should interfere on this issue because it had an agreement to save the lives of Kashmiri people'.

Reuters photo

Geneva [Switzerland]: Referring to the recently elected Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan as 'Taliban Khan', human right activists told the United Nations Thursday that Islamabad is misleading international community.

"Now, with the new government in Pakistan, the situation is going to be bad to worse because of Imran Khan. Although he went to Oxford, going to Oxford doesn`t make any difference. He is called as `Taliban Khan` because a man who can give Rs. 30 crore from the official budget of the KPK (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) to madrasas, which is known as Taliban university, you can see how much he has given unofficially. And how much support he is giving it to these fundamentalist groups, whose duty is to kill or convert people," human rights activist from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) Dr Shabir Choudhry said during an event on the sidelines of the 39th Session of the UN Human Rights Session in Geneva. 

Other PoK activists expressed concern over growing extremism and terrorist activities in the PoK.

“PoK has remained a hub of terrorism for decades. Pakistan`s agencies have created terrorists` infrastructure in the area to carry out terrorist activities in other parts of the Kashmir. It has become a launching pad,” said Shaukat Ali Kashmiri, exiled chairman of United Kashmir People`s National Party. 

“We have complete information that Pakistan has not changed its policies, it is merely statements by them to mislead the international community, but terrorist camps are running under the patronage of state of Pakistan," he added.

"They have got a license to intimidate and frighten people. If need to be, they kill them," said Dr Choudhry while referring to ongoing protests in Muzaffarabad and other parts of PoK against Pakistan`s exploitation of water resources in the region.

The construction of Neelum-Jhelum hydropower project on River Neelum has created environmental issues and severe water crisis in the capital Muzaffarabad.

"When the tunnels were opened to divert the flow of Neelum River, we raised the issue at the United Nations citing that it will impact the life of people in Muzaffarabad. But, Pakistanis have called it propaganda by India, but now the people of Muzaffarabad have realised the truth as their life is getting destroyed day by day,” Kashmiri said.

Kashmiri added, "Not only in Muzaffarabad, but protests are also happening in Rawalakot, Tararkhel, Kotli and other areas, which has taken a shape of a movement `Save Neelum River, Save Muzaffarabad`. I believe India should interfere on this issue because it had an agreement to save the lives of Kashmiri people. India should pressurise the international community to protect the rights of oppressed and vulnerable people".

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is expected to meet her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi on the sidelines of the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in New York. Confirming the development. 

The announcement of a meeting comes hours after a letter by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for Prime Minister Narendra Modi was reported. In the letter, the Pakistani PM had called for a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries to improve ties between the neighbouring countries.