Re: Issue of the British Kashmiris recognition

05 March 2014

Dear Mr Simon Danczuk MP for Rochdale

Re: Issue of the British Kashmiris recognition

It was pleasure to not that you have very kindly and rightly supported people of Jammu and 

Kashmir’s campaign to be recognised as a separate ethnic community in Britain.

You have rightly said that "Many Kashmiris have an incredibly strong sense of ethnic identity; they do not want to be counted as Pakistani or Indian, because this is not how they think of themselves". Also as you have pointed out, we pay taxes and make a valuable contribution to the British economy.

Failing to recognise us as a separate ethnic group will practically mean negating our contribution and depriving us from our identity and sense of belonging; and this feature can have a negative connotation and can drive some people to search for another identity, which may make them an easy target of the extremist groups.

It may be in the interest of those forces which occupy us to ensure that we don’t get a separate Kashmiri identity in Britain, but is it not responsibility of a democratic society to ensure that no community is treated unfairly and deprived of national identity.

I hope that as a responsible and respected Member of the British Parliament you will continue to support our rights and rights of other communities; and help to create a society where no one is treated unfairly because of race, religion and ethnicity.

You have won minds and hearts of thousands of Kashmiris; and we expect support from conscientious people like you for our right of self determination that people of Jammu and Kashmir can determine their future.

Although I am not your constituent, but I look forward to meeting you in near future.

Yours sincerely

Dr Shabir Choudhry

On behalf of Kashmir National Party