Kashmir Day barely holds any meaning for common Pakistanis

Lahore, Feb.6 (ANI): As Pakistan celebrated Kashmir Day on Thursday (Feb.5) to showcase its 'solidarity' with the so-called ongoing self-determination struggle in Kashmir, a commentator has questioned the usefulness of observing the event in the leading Pakistan Daily-The News.

In an article titled "Hit and Run" on the Op-ed page of The News, Shakir Husain has questioned the justification and motive of observing Kashmir Day.

"Kashmir Day is today , and people all over Pakistan are trying to figure out what to do with their Thursday. Nobody quite knows what they are supposed to do on Kashmir Day other than sleep late, eat halwa puri , and maybe watch a few Indian movies," Shakir writes in the article.

"For the more involved , Kashmir Day provides a day for people like Qazi Hussain Ahmed to lead marches supporting the Kashmiris - Qazi Sahib is probably not too fond of halwa puri or Bollywood; and at his age sleeping in is probably not an option either," Shakir adds.

"Most people that I have talked to find it absurd that Qazi Sahib and his friends never find the time to protest when militants decapitate fellow Muslims in Swat (and elsewhere in Pakistan) and blow up girls' schools in the Northern Areas. Most Pakistani citizens have more than enough problems on their plate to really care about Kashmir," writes Shakir in the article, while adding that he means it in the most non-offensive way possible.

"But let's be honest and look around us for a moment-our country is a mess. Politically, we have had to watch insecure pygmies with fragile egos duke it out without really caring about the people who voted for them. And for good measure our political leadership's ability to sympathise with the "masses" is manifested by them acquiring luxury vehicles, VIP perks for themselves and their families, and the pursuit of VIP aircraft which can ferry them across our pure land. The greed and avarice that's on display would put even the most brazen Citibankers to shame-I will exclude Shakut the First from that list though," Shakir points out.(ANI)