Stone-pelters in Jammu and Kashmir
The United Nations (UN) on Thursday released its first-ever report on alleged human rights violations in both Kashmir and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Demanding an international inquiry into the alleged rights violation, the UN report claimed that the people on both sides of the Line of Control have been detrimentally impacted and suffer from limitations or denial of a range of human rights.
Reacting sharply to the UN report, India said that it was “fallacious, tendentious and motivated”.
Lodging a strong protest with the United Nations, the Government of India said that it is “deeply concerned that individual prejudices are being allowed to undermine the credibility of a UN institution.”
Supporting Modi government's stand on UN report, the Congress said that the party also rejects the report as a prejudiced attempt by vested interests to hurt India's Sovereignity and National Interests.
"Jammu & Kashmir is an integral & inseparable part of India. We reject UN Human Rights Report as a prejudiced attempt by vested interests to hurt India's Sovereignity & National Interests. Congress party supports the Govt's stand in dismissing the report," Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted.
"Jammu & Kashmir is an integral & inseparable part of India. We reject UN Human Rights Report as a prejudiced attempt by vested interests to hurt India's Sovereignity & National Interests," he added.
The party also accused UNHRC of preparing this report with zero understanding of situation in Jammu and Kashmir and wondered whether the UN should overlook the state sponsored terrorism being exported on Indian soil by Pakistan
"UNHRC prepared this report remotely with zero understanding of situation in J&K. How does the report justify terrorism by self styled militants of JeM & Hizbul Mujahideen? Should the UN overlook the state sponsored terrorism being exported on Indian soil by Pakistan?" Surjewala asked.
Taking serious note of human rights violation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir(PoK), the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights asked Pakistani government to end its “misuse” of anti-terror legislation to persecute peaceful activists and quash dissent.
As far as the Government of India is concerned, it has always maintained that the country’s democracy has all that is required to address legitimate grievances.
Indian officials have always pointed out that the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir can’t be compared with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir as “the former has a democratically elected government while the latter has seen a Pakistani diplomat arbitrarily appointed as its head”.
Noting that a variety of armed groups has been actively operating in Jammu and Kashmir since 1980s, the UN report accused Pakistan’s military of continuing to support their operations across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
It also pointed out that there has been documented evidence of these armed groups committing a wide range of human rights abuses, including kidnappings and killings of civilians and sexual violence in Jammu and Kashmir.
Meanwhile, Pakistan has welcomed the proposal by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to establish a Commission of Inquiry for international investigation into the alleged human rights violations in Kashmir and PoK.
Watch Video: India rejects UN report on Kashmir
