Kashmir Martyrs Day to be observed tomorrow

MUZAFFARABAD: Kashmir Martyrs Day will be observed throughout Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan on Monday (July 13) to pay homage to 22 Kashmiris killed by the troops of Dogra Maharaja on 13th of July 1931.

On the 13th of July 1931, the troops of Dogra Maharaja had killed 22 Kashmiris outside Central Jail in Srinagar during the court proceedings against Abdul Qadeer, who had asked Kashmiri people to defy the Dogra rule. Since then, Kashmiris have been observing 13th July as Kashmir Martyrs’ Day.

Meanwhile, Hurriyat leadership including Syed Ali Gilani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and others have appealed to the people of the territory to observe complete shutdown tomorrow to reaffirm the pledge to continue the mission of their martyrs till the achievement of the inalienable right to self-determination.

The APHC in a statement said the 1931 mass movement was Kashmiris’ first collective struggle against the centuries-old autocratic rule and those killed on 13th July are considered to be the first martyrs of the ongoing freedom movement.

It also called for a march towards the Martyrs’ Graveyard at Naqashband Sahib in Srinagar to pay homage to the martyrs of 1931 who are buried there.

In this connection, a special function will be held at Prime Minister House on the day under the special direction of AJK Prime Minister Raja Muhammad Farooq Haider Khan to pay homage to the martyrs of 1931.

Talking to the media here on Saturday the Prime Minister said that the sacrifices of Kashmiri martyrs in fact is a milestone in the history of Kashmir struggle.

He said for the first time no function in the held valley is scheduled to pay homage to the Shuhda due to severe restrictions of the Indian government.