‘Pak home to Intl proscribed terrorists’
J&K, Ladakh integral part of India, their issues internal
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Sept 23: India has called upon Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism, shut down terror infrastructure immediately and vacate the Indian territory under its illegal and forcible occupation, a reference towards Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK).
India made the remarks at 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly after Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar raised the Kashmir bogey in his address.
Petal Gahlot, India’s First Secretary for Second Committee of General Assembly responded to Kakar’s charges with strong worded statement calling upon Pakistan to take three steps immediately which include an end to cross-border terrorism and shutting down terror infrastructure immediately, vacating Indian territory under its illegal and forcible occupation and stopping grave and persistent human rights violations against the minorities.
Pakistan has been holding on to PoJK illegally. There has been unanimous resolution of the Indian Parliament of 1994 that PoJK is an integral part of India. In the recent times, there has been an uprising in PoJK against Pakistan for inflation, atrocities and lack of facilities with people chanting ‘Modi, Modi’ slogans praising the Indian Prime Minister for lot of development taking place in Jammu and Kashmir.
Charging Pakistan with giving shelter to international proscribed terrorist entities and individuals in the world, Gahlot said Pakistan has been home and patron to such terrorists and added that instead of engaging in technical sophistry, “We call upon Pakistan to take credible and verifiable action against the perpetrators of Mumbai terror attacks whose victims await justice even after 15 years”.
It may be mentioned here that Pakistan has been sheltering Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Sayeed, Hizbul Mujahideen supremo Syed Salahuddin and many other top terrorists from Jammu and Kashmir who have been involved in encouraging militancy.
India reiterated that Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are integral parts of India.
“Issues pertaining to the two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh are purely internal to India and Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on our domestic matters,” Gahlot declared.
She said Pakistan has been indulging in malicious propaganda and has become habitual offender to misuse the forum of United Nations to peddle baseless charges against India. She added that Pakistan does so to divert world’s attention away from its abysmal record on human rights.
India also came down very hard on Pakistan’s own worst human rights record and made mention of burning down of Churches and houses of Christians last month at Jalanwala in Faisalabad district. This, Gahlot said, is glaring example of systematic violence against minorities.
She pointed out that 19 Churches were gutted and 89 houses were burnt in the violence targeted against Christians in Jalanwala. Places of worship of Ahmedias were also demolished, she said.
“Pakistan would do well to put its own house in order before venturing to point a finger at the world’s largest democracy (India),” she asserted.
India said an estimated 1000 women from minority communities are kidnapped, forcefully converted and married off in Pakistan every year. In this connection, Gahlot cited a report by Pakistan’s own Human Rights Commission.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
