Mirwaiz sends SOS letter to Pope, UN

Kashmir’s key separatist leader and chief Muslim cleric, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, on Tuesday sent an SOS letter to world religious leaders and various international organisations, including the United Nations, the European Union and the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) drawing their attention towards the “urgent and grave” situation prevailing in the Valley.

The religious leaders, who have been urged to use their clout to build pressure on India to resolve the Kashmir situation, are Pope Francis, the Dalai Lama, the Imam of the Grand mosque in Mecca and Shankarachrya Jayendra Saraswathi of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham.

“This is a call for help to find a solution to this seemingly intractable problem which is taking a massive human toll. India and Pakistan cannot and are not able to do this on their own,” the letter, copies of which have been sent also to foreign envoys in New Delhi, says. It alleges that a war was been waged against the people of Kashmir by “democratic India in total violation of all democratic norms”.

“The security machinery of India has embarked upon the strategy of ruthlessly crushing us and our resistance to its unprecedented brutality,” the letter said.