Organisers noted that more than 100,000 Kashmiris have lost their lives over the past 78 years due to a Pakistan-backed proxy conflict and terrorism, calling Islamabad’s annual show of sympathy — a mockery of real suffering.
London: Pakistan’s annual attempt to project itself as a champion of Kashmir collapsed into an international embarrassment after Kashmiris and Pakistani dissidents across Europe denounced Islamabad’s so-called “Kashmir Solidarity Day” as a propaganda stunt launched to mask decades of violence, repression, and demographic manipulation.
From the United Kingdom to Belgium, protesters rejected Pakistan’s narrative, accusing Islamabad of waging a prolonged proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir, suppressing political rights in territories under its control, and exporting disinformation abroad while denying basic freedoms at home.
Bradford Protest Targets Pakistan Consulate
The most visible demonstration took place outside the Pakistani Consulate in Bradford, where residents from Jammu and Kashmir, under the banner of the United Kashmir People’s National Party (UKPNP), staged a large and vocal protest. Demonstrators dismissed the observance as “fraudulent solidarity”, raising slogans such as “Our State is Ours – Occupation is Unacceptable”, “Stop Land Grabbing”, and “End State Terrorism”.
Organisers noted that more than 100,000 Kashmiris have lost their lives over the past 78 years due to a Pakistan-backed proxy conflict and terrorism, calling Islamabad’s annual show of sympathy — a mockery of real suffering.
Mahmood Ahmed Kashmiri, Chairman of Jammu Kashmir National Independence Alliance (JKNIA), said Pakistan’s rhetoric amounted to an insult to a people whose national identity and natural resources continue to be systematically eroded. He accused Pakistani authorities of exploiting rivers, land and minerals while erasing Kashmiri political agency.
Sardar Tikka Khan Tahir, Central Secretary Information of UKPNP, highlighted what he called “blatant violations” of State Subject Laws in the Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, alleging that non-locals are being settled through fake documentation. Despite repeated assurances to local action committees, Pakistani authorities have failed to honour commitments, he said.
Several leaders, including UKPNP officials from Europe and the UK zones, declared that Kashmiris do not recognise February 5 as a day of solidarity. Instead, they observe it as a “Day of Betrayal”, recalling Pakistan’s role in forcibly dividing the state.
London And Brussels Echo The Rejection
Parallel protests were also held in London and Brussels, amplifying the message. In a statement issued in Brussels, UKPNP’s Foreign Affairs Committee said February 5 had been reduced to a “hollow political ritual” designed for international optics rather than justice.
“True solidarity is measured by actions, not slogans,” the statement said, listing the denial of self-governance, land and resource control, political expression and constitutional safeguards in Pakistan-administered regions. The party categorically rejected any trifurcation of the historical state of Jammu and Kashmir.
UKPNP President Jamil Maqsood said Kashmiris do not need staged solidarity but “justice, dignity, and the right to decide their own future.”
Calls For Accountability
Speakers across all protests recalled October 22, 1947, when, they said, Pakistan sent tribal militias into Jammu and Kashmir, triggering the state’s division. They questioned how Islamabad could claim moral authority while remaining, in their words, a central architect of Kashmir’s dismemberment.
UKPNP Chairman Sardar Shaukat Ali Kashmiri reiterated the party’s rejection of violence, sectarianism and armed struggle, stressing its commitment to peaceful, democratic resistance. He condemned what he described as demographic engineering in Pakistan-controlled areas and urged the United Nations and international rights bodies to intervene.
While also criticising Pakistan’s deep state’s policies, the speakers insisted that Pakistan’s actions, ranging from repression to proxy warfare, have contributed significantly to displacement and bloodshed.
Disinformation Drive Exposed
The protests came amid reports that Pakistan had launched an extensive, state-directed disinformation campaign around February 5, mobilising diplomatic missions, educational institutions, religious bodies and media outlets to internationalise the Kashmir issue following what officials privately describe as a major military and diplomatic setback last year. Documents cited by NDTV had earlier suggested the campaign went far beyond symbolic gestures.
Message To The World
At the conclusion of the Bradford demonstration, organisers vowed to continue peaceful protests until Jammu and Kashmir is freed from Pakistani occupation and its national rights are restored. The protesters appealed to the international community to hold Pakistan accountable as the occupying power and to move beyond slogans toward concrete action.
As February 5 drew to a close, Pakistan’s carefully choreographed solidarity narrative lay in tatters, challenged not by rival states but by Kashmiris themselves, speaking from the streets of Europe and the UK.
