ISLAMABAD: An Islamic ministerial group August 13, denounced Indian plans to hold state assembly elections in occupied Kashmir in September as fraudulent, and asked New Delhi to settle the issue peacefully with Pakistan. The five nation contact group of the 5lnation Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), in a declaration issued after a meeting in Islamabad urged India to respect human rights and stop alleged repressive measures in the Himalayan region. The group meeting was opened by Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who called Kashmir the hottest flashpoint for conflict in south Asia.
~The contact group said in its declaration it rejected India’s efforts to maintain its illegal occupation of Kashmir through the holding of sham elections. It called for a peaceful settlement of the dispute in accordance with United Nations resolutions of the 1950s, which envisioned a plebiscite in the region, and under a 1972 peace accord between India and Pakistan.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 21, 1996
