'Hurriyat leaders cannot claim to be Indians'

By Our Staff Reporter

PATHANAMTHITTA, SEPT. 5. The Union Minister for Railways, Mr. O. Rajagopal, has said that it was ironical that many Hurriyat leaders who reportedly claim themselves to be Indian citizens were demanding separation of Kashmir from India with the alleged backing of Pakistan.

Reacting to the recent visit of certain Hurriyat leaders to Kerala, Mr. Rajagopal expressed concern over the contradictory stand taken by the Hurriyat leaders towards the atrocities against the Hindus in Kashmir when they make ``clamorous allegations of human rights violations'' in Kashmir.

Talking to mediapersons at the Tourism Guest House at Aranmula this afternoon, the Minister said the Hurriyat leaders could not be seen as Indian citizens as long as they stood for an independent Kashmir and remained mere pawns in the hands of Pakistan.

According to Mr Rajagopal, human rights take only the backseat when it comes to the point of the national security at large. However, the Indian citizens are free to travel anywhere in India and preach their philosophies and ideologies without putting the national security at stake.

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Section  : National
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