Separatists call for boycott of J&K panchayat polls

Srinagar, Sep 4: The separatists of Kashmir have called for a boycott of the panchayat and municipal elections scheduled in the state of J&K from October 1 onwards.

The Joint Resistance Leadership said that the government of India wanted to thrust the elections on the people by deploying additional forces. " The government of India waned to thrust and enforce panchayat and municipal elections upon us through additional deployment of lakhs of forces under the pretext of lapse of developmental fund," the JRL said.

We want to convey to the government of India the loud and clear message by the people of Kashmir that they boycott any kind of participation in elections and instead demand right to self-determination, the JRL also stated.

The JRL said that the "enforced elections are nothing but another assault on people to harass them and cause them further inconvenience and agony". They said that any participation in these elections is propagated as a people's verdict in favour of India and hence they are used "as a means to dilute J&K disputed status and undo the holding of a referendum."