Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Saifuddin Soz on Friday backed former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's statement on Kashmiris' independence

SRINAGAR: Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Saifuddin Soz on Friday backed former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's statement on Kashmiris' independence.

Earlier, Musharraf had said if given a chance Kashmiris would want to stay independent.

Speaking to ANI, Soz said, "Musharraf said Kashmiris don't want to merge with Pakistan, their first choice is independence. The statement was true then and remains true now also. I say the same but I know that it is not possible."

In his forthcoming book, 'Kashmir: Glimpses of History and the Story of Struggle', which will be launched next week, Soz said, "Musharraf had explained that if Kashmiris were given a chance to exercise their free will, they would prefer to be independent. In fact, this assessment of Musharraf seems to be correct even today!"

This is is not the first time Soz had said something controversial. Last year, he courted controversy by saying that he would have kept Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani alive if it was in his power. The Congress leader further said that he would have held a dialogue with Wani if he was not killed by security forces in 2016.

Also, once Soz blamed India for the unrest in Valley and said the problem in Kashmir is created by India not by Pakistan.