Srinagar, July 13: Sheikh Abdullah to-day called upon leaders of Pakistan to “prove by deeds and not by words alone” their sincerity in supporting the right of self-determination for Jammu and Kashmir. He declared, “If they are really keen about Kashmiris’ right for self-determination, then let them start with the area of the State under their occupation.” The Sheikh was addressing a huge Martyrs’ Day rally organised by the outlawed Plebiscite Front at “Shahid Mazar” here this evening. The Sheikh said: “As far as we are concerned, our watchword is self-reliance and not dependence on others. Pakistan should first grant freedom to the area of the State under its occupation and leave us alone to fight our battle.” The Sheikh also denied that he had ever meant to seek Chinese or Pakistani support when he referred to the two countries at a recent public meeting. “What I had meant to clarify was how some people here looked towards China and Pakistan for support to their freedom demand. But my statement was torn out of context and was made to appear as if I had asked for support from China. This was being done deliberately to turn Russia and India against us,” he added. The question, he said, was not whether this or that country “supports our cause.” The question of “freedom for Kashmir is the issue that concerns solely Kashmiris themselves,” he added. In a reference to the Prime Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi’s statement that no outsider would be associated with the Indo-Pakistan Government-level talks on Kashmir, the Sheikh said this was an argument with which “Kashmiris would never reconcile.”
