Geelani wants UN to appoint war crimes tribunal in Kashmir

SRINAGAR : Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has written to the United Nations (UN) urging it to appoint a war crimes tribunal for Jammu and Kashmir to “identify the culprits” of human rights abuses and penalise them.

The UN General Assembly session begins on Monday in New York where Pakistan is expected to raise the Kashmir issue.

Geelani has written a letter to the UN secretary general saying that the people of Kashmir request UN intervention for a peaceful settlement of the Kashmir issue, lingering for seven decades before the world body.

The letter reads, “The people of Kashmir also demand to appoint a war crimes tribunal to identify the culprits of human rights abuses and to penalise them as violation of human rights at the hands of Indian occupation forces, and denial of civil and political liberties.”

It also mentions that “indiscriminate use” of lethal weapons, pellet guns, bullets, pawa shells to contain public rallies has become a routine matter. “People are mercilessly killed, maimed arrested, blinded, bruised and molestation of woman is used as a war weapon by Indian occupation forces,” Geelani alleges.

He has demanded that UN should prevail upon the Indian government to give free access to global human rights groups to take on-spot stock of the situation in Kashmir.