Confront Pakistan, adopt Kashmiris: Owaisi to govt

Hyderabad: AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday cited the spontaneous and organic protests in Kashmir after the Pahalgam attack to say that it showed there was no support for Pakistan left in the region.

"In fact, it is a historic opportunity for the government, for Prime Minister Modi, for Home Minister Amit Shah. They should use this opportunity properly. You should definitely confront Pakistan but you should also adopt Kashmiris," the fifth-term Hyderabad MP said in an interview to PTI Videos.

Owaisi said that after the April 22 terror attack, "there was maatam (mourning) in every Kashmiri household".

Asked to elaborate on what he means by adopting Kashmiris, he said the government should ensure that there are no human rights abuses there, "they should get their rights, Kashmiri students shouldn't be attacked in other parts of the country".

"All this should be done. We shouldn't lose this opportunity. Don't leave the Kashmiris to their fate. Adopt them," Owaisi said.

He said it is the unwritten ideology of Pakistan to foment instability and communal divide in India and to thwart its economic growth. And it has been doing so since it sent tribal invaders into Jammu and Kashmir after India's independence.

"You can never trust Pakistan as long as the Pakistani deep state, Pakistani ISI, Pakistani military's objective is to destabilise Bharat," the AIMIM leader said.

On April 22, Pakistan-linked terrorists gunned down 26 people, mostly tourists, in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam. Political parties, religious leaders and social organisations condemned the horrific attack and held protests in many parts of J-K following the terror strike.