Pakistan on Monday said that it would “exercise all possible options to counter the illegal steps” taken by India regarding Indian-held Kashmir (IHK). The comments came after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government introduced plans to weaken the special rights of residents in occupied Kashmir, amid heavy deployment of security forces and suspension of phone and Internet services in the valley. In a press release, the Foreign Office (FO) strongly condemned and rejected the move by the Indian government, stressing that IHK was internationally recognised as a disputed territory.
“No unilateral step by the government of India can change this disputed status, as enshrined in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions,” read the statement. “The decision will never be acceptable to the people of IHK and Pakistan.”
“As the party to this international dispute, Pakistan will exercise all possible options to counter the illegal steps,” the statement read, while reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to the Kashmiri cause.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, while speaking to a private news channel, said that if the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of India felt that their policies were effective, they would not have imposed the governor’s rule or conducted politics through presidential orders. “If they have turned IHK and Ladhak into union territories, it is evident that they have lost hope […] Kashmiris that used to support them earlier are also in jail or under house arrest.” He said that today, India had once again “revived and internationalised the Kashmir issue”. “This will not solve the problem, rather it will escalate it,” he warned. “They will never be able to repress the issue. Time will show what a dangerous game has been played.”
Meanwhile, the Foreign Office summoned the Indian high commissioner and conveyed a strong demarche over the actions taken by the Indian government with regard to IHK. According to a statement issued by the FO, the foreign secretary conveyed Pakistan’s unequivocal rejection of these illegal actions as they are in breach of international law and several UN Security Council resolutions.
Pakistan’s resolute condemnation of the unlawful actions aimed at further consolidating the illegal occupation of IHK was underscored, said a press release.
The foreign secretary also condemned the preceding pre-meditated steps such as complete lockdown of IHK, deployment of additional troops, the imposition of curfew, the house arrest of Kashmiri leaders and suspension of communication services, among others. The foreign secretary called upon India to halt and reverse its unlawful and destabilising actions, ensure full compliance with UN Security Council resolutions, and refrain from any further action that could entail serious implications.
The FO reiterated that Pakistan would continue to extend political, diplomatic and moral support to the Kashmiri people’s indigenous and legitimate struggle for the realisation of their inalienable right to self-determination.
