Malvinder Singh Mali, advisor to Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu, stirred a huge controversy on Tuesday by saying that Kashmir was a "separate country" and both India and Pakistan were illegal occupants.
Mali’s comments, which he shared via a post on Facebook, garnered immediate attention and sparked a huge row. Mali was slammed from both within and outside Congress and he was asked to apologize and take back his words.
Mali had said that Kashmir is a country of Kashmiri people and since India did not honor the decision of UNO, it has no right to claim it.
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“Kashmir is a country of Kashmiri people, on the rules set to leave India in 1947, on the decisions of UNO, on the decisions made by India, Kashmir is divided into two pieces by Pakistan and India on top of that Occupied," read Malvinder Singh Mali's post.
However, he did not budge and stood by his comments when hurled with abuses. Mali is one of the four advisors to the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) leader Navjot Singh Sidhu.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal criticized Mali and questioned his commitment to the nation. He even called for the police FIR against Mali. In response, Mali posted a newspaper clipping that showed Akalis in the past supported Kashmir’s right to self-determination.
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Meanwhile, this is not the first time Mali has found himself in a controversy. On 14 August, he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh of instigating communal tension in the state.
Mali's statement came hours after he was named by Navjot Sidhu as one of his 4 advisors.
