Kashmiris to observe Black Day on October 27

Kashmiris on both sides of the Line of Control and in other countries will observe Black Day on Tuesday, October 27, the 79th anniversary of the arrival of Indian troops in Srinagar in 1947, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported on Monday.

According to the state news agency, the day will be marked by a complete shutdown and protests in the territory its reports call Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir. APP said the observance is intended to renew the demand for the right to self-determination.

The agency dated the start of the dispute to October 27, 1947, when, it said, Indian troops arrived in Srinagar. Its reports described the observance as a way of telling the world that India had held the territory by military force since then, against the will of its people.

APP issued two reports on the planned observance, one datelined Islamabad and the other Mirpur in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Both said the day would be marked on both sides of the Line of Control and by Kashmiri communities in other countries.

Neither report named the organisations that have called the shutdown and protests, set out a programme of events for Tuesday, or said what security arrangements, if any, were being made. No figure for expected participation was given.

The reports also did not say whether events were planned in Pakistani cities, or whether the federal government in Islamabad or the Azad Jammu and Kashmir administration had organised any official programme for the day.

The Friday Times carried a commentary piece on Monday under the headline "A Black Day That Renews Pakistan's Resolve For Kashmiri Self-Determination", framing the anniversary as a statement of Pakistani support for the demand.

No statement from the Indian government or from any Indian political party on the planned observance appeared in the reports available to Skardu Times.