GENEVA (Kashmir English): Speakers at a seminar organised by the International Action for Peace and Sustainable Development (IAPSD) condemned India’s use of false flag operations in Kashmir, describing it as a long-standing tactic to malign the Kashmiris’ legitimate struggle and justify military crackdowns.
Held on the sidelines of the United Nations Human Rights Council session, the seminar brought together activists, academicians, political leaders, and legal experts from across the globe.
Notable speakers, who addressed the event included Ghulam Muhammad Safi, Convener All Parties Hurriyat Conference AJK chapter; Ch. Pervaiz Ashraf, former Minister AJK; Altaf Hussain Wani Chairman KIIR; Sardar Amjad Yousuf, President and Chief Operating Officer of IAPSD; and Dr. Saira Shah, representative of the Community Human Rights Advocacy (CHRAC).
The speakers cited instances such as the abduction of six Western tourists in 1995, the Chattisinghpora massacre of 2000, the 2019 Pulwama attack, and the recent Pahalgam incident as examples of India’s false-flag operations.
The speakers noted with concern that such incidents have been used by the Indian authorities to justify harsh crackdowns and to discredit and de-legitimise the Kashmiris’ peaceful struggle for right to self-determination.
They pointed out that the 1995 abduction of the Western tourists was used by the Indian state as an instrument to shape global opinion in its favour and that a noted historian Victoria Schofield’s analyses support the claim.
“The book—The Meadow: Where the Terror Began—by investigative journalists Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark provides a detailed account of how the kidnapping was manipulated by Indian authorities to give a communal colour to Kashmir’s resistance”, the speakers said.
“Similarly, the Chattisinghpora massacre was used to malign Kashmir’s indigenous struggle and the massacre was orchestrated at a time when then-US President Bill Clinton visited South Asia”, they observed.
Brutal killings of Sikhs by India
According to the speakers, later investigations indicated that the brutal killings of Sikhs were carried out by Indian agencies themselves.
The recent attack in Pahalgam was highlighted by speakers as another example of false flag operations that nearly brought India and Pakistan to the brink of full-scale war.
Highlighting its impacts on the people of Kashmir, they stated that New Delhi used it to intensify its crackdown in Kashmir. “Instead of launching a credible investigation, authorities conducted arbitrary detentions and carried out collective punishments against Kashmiris”, they remarked.
The speakers also criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent remarks in Bihar, where he threatened to cut off Pakistan’s water supply, describing this as highly inflammatory and an example of jingoistic rhetoric, which escalated tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
The seminar concluded with a strong call for an independent inquiry into these incidents. “An independent probe is vital not only to establish the truth but also to deter future abuses and ensure accountability for the victims and their families,” the speakers asserted.
