Islamabad, The All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter organized a seminar in Islamabad to commemorate the anniversaries of Kashmiri liberation leaders Shaheed Muhammad Maqbool Butt and Shaheed Muhammad Afzal Guru. The event paid tribute to their significant contributions to the Kashmiri freedom movement and reflected on their legacies in the face of adversity.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the seminar was chaired by APHC-AJK chapter Convener Mahmood Ahmed Saghar. The gathering remembered Muhammad Afzal Guru, executed on February 9, 2013, and Muhammad Maqbool Butt, executed on February 11, 1984, both in New Delhi’s Tihar Jail for their prominent roles in advocating for Kashmir’s independence. The seminar highlighted the refusal of Indian authorities to return their bodies for burial in their homeland, a point of contention that speakers emphasized as a continued injustice.
Speakers at the event condemned the executions and the broader strategy of suppression employed by India in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, including illegal detentions and cruel tactics aimed at quelling the freedom movement. They argued that such actions could never extinguish the spirit of freedom among Kashmiris and vowed to continue the mission of these martyrs.
The seminar underscored the martyrs’ status as heroes of the Kashmiri people and criticized the Indian judiciary for what participants described as a gross miscarriage of justice. They called on the international community and human rights organizations to pressure India to release the bodies of Butt and Guru for burial As per Kashmiri rites.
Furthermore, participants urged India to recognize the Kashmiris’ right to self-determination and appealed to global citizens and organizations to support this cause. The seminar also expressed solidarity with the family of Ghulam Muhammad Butt, alias Insha Allah Khan, a Hurriyat activist from the Tral area of occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Notable attendees included Muhammad Farooq Rahmani, Ghulam Muhammad Safi, Syed Faiz Naqshbandi, and many others, all of whom reiterated the importance of remaining steadfast in the quest for freedom and justice. The seminar concluded with a collective affirmation of the Kashmiri resolve to continue the struggle against Indian occupation, inspired by the sacrifices of its martyrs.