Qureshi says ‘Kashmir Cell’ to be set up in Foreign Ministry and Desks will be formed in embassies; UNSC, OIC responded positively to Pak call; Modi has buried Jawaharlal Nehru’s India
Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Saturday warned that Pakistan army and the nation are ready to defend if India resorts to any misadventure in an attempt to divert the world’s attention from the ongoing lockdown in occupied Kashmir. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said this while addressing a joint press conference with Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor following critical examination of the current intense situation in occupied Kashmir by the eight-member Kashmir Committee.
The minister stated that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the United Nations Security Council have both responded positively to Pakistan’s calls to take notice of India’s recent actions in occupied Kashmir and added it was possible India could resort to a misadventure to create diversion.
“India can [resort to] misadventure in its attempt to divert the world’s attention away from its actions in occupied Kashmir. The Pakistan army and the nation are ready to defend if India attempts any misadventure,” he said.
“The issue was raised in the UNSC after five decades and a discussion took place on the matter — that is a major development, especially since India tried its utmost to keep it from happening,” Qureshi said. He stressed that the UNSC should consider itself responsible for helping resolve the Kashmir dispute.
The foreign minister said that it had been decided in a meeting of the Special Committee on Kashmir that a Kashmir Cell will be created at Pakistan’s Foreign Office. Furthermore, Kashmir desks will also be established at Pakistani embassies all over the world, “in order to carry out effective communication on the matter.”
“The Special Committee on Kashmir has members from all concerned parties, including members of the opposition,” Qureshi noted. “This sends out the message that Pakistan is on the same page when it comes to the issue of occupied Kashmir and India’s actions there.”
“All members of the meeting gave viable suggestions on the situation in Kashmir.” Answering a question regarding Pakistan’s stance on Article 370 of India’s constitution, Qureshi said: “Pakistan does not recognise Article 370 of the Indian constitution. It is not our concern. Our concern is with the forceful change in Kashmir’s demographics and the violation of the rights of the people of Kashmir.
“Today voices are being raised there [in India] and they are saying that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has buried Jawaharlal Nehru’s India as “there’s a huge difference between both. Voices are being raised within India and they are calling for returning the special status to Kashmir.
“India is functioning on a dual doctrine. The three people carrying this doctrine out are Modi, Indian Interior Minister Amit Shah and Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.” Answering a question regarding Shah’s statement regarding the use of nuclear weapons, Qureshi said: “When there’s a problem in the brain, then decisions like the one taken on August 5 come into being. When someone loses their mind they give the kind of statement the Indian interior minister gave.”
The foreign minister expressed the concern that India could carry out some sort of a misadventure against Pakistan but said, “Pakistan’s people are ready for any action and will give a befitting response to it.”
“We achieved a [milestone] yesterday, which shocked India. The Kashmir issue was raised at a platform which is responsible for resolving the dispute,” he said.
“Pakistan is a responsible state but India has always threatened us. Responsible states do not make statements like Rajnath Singh’s,” said DG ISPR and added that more troops were being sent to the LoC as a deterrence. Rejecting Indian propaganda that Pakistan was supporting infiltration inside IHK, he said, “Indian-occupied Kashmir has been turned into a prison by the occupying forces.”
Responding to a question about the UN Security Council meeting on Kashmir, FM Qureshi said, “The meeting could not be held if all the members did not have consensus. India made efforts to prevent the meeting, but its viewpoint was rejected.” Addressing the press conference, DG ISPR Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor said Pakistan’s armed forces are “ready for any misadventure that India might initiate.”
“The situation in India and occupied Kashmir can be judged by the kind of statements their commanders have been giving for the past few days,” he said. “We believe that Kashmir’s reaction on India’s actions may come out soon and we are prepared for that too.”
“The atrocities being carried out by India in Kashmir are now out in the open for the whole world to see. This is not the matter of a piece of land, it is the matter of the rights of the people living in Kashmir.
The army spokesperson also made it clear that Pakistan would not take any action that may result in international opinion turning against Islamabad. “With the number of Indian troops present in the Kashmir region at the moment, even if a single person enters there [without them knowing] it would be a huge failure on India’s part,” he said, seemingly in preemption of a future accusation that Pakistan is helping militants infiltrate the disputed territory.
“Pakistan cannot carry out any action [in Kashmir] and rejects the notion that militants are being sent to Kashmir from here,” he clarified.
Maj-Gen Ghafoor also pointed out that a number of Pakistani Twitter accounts posting in the favour of Kashmir have been blocked. “Pakistan army is fully prepared to confront every misadventure by India […] India’s provocation continues across the Line of Control.”
DG ISPR revealed that Indian soldiers have been deployed at every nook and corner in the valley and the world has been keenly observing human rights’ abuses by the occupation forces.
“At present stage, the biggest issue in Jammu and Kashmir is about human rights’ violations […] the entire region has been turned into a prison,” Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor mentioned. “By staging a false flag operation, India can take any action along the LoC; however Pakistan armed forces would respond effectively,” he said while refuting impression that Pakistan has been escalating tensions along the LoC.
He urged the international community to put more efforts for resolution of the dispute which he termed as “a nuclear flashpoint” between arch rivals Pakistan and India.
“India should forget Azad Kashmir and now the time has come for breaking free the occupied Kashmir from the occupation of Indian forces,” he said, adding that the statement of Prime Minister Imran Khan and Army Chief of reaching the last stage reiterates the army’s stance on the matter.
DG ISPR said that the last soldier of the army would fight for Kashmir till his last breath.
He also thanked social media activists in fighting Indian propaganda over the Kashmir conflict. He said Kashmir has become a jail where soldiers are deployed in front of every door. Answering a question, the DG ISPR said Kashmir is a nuclear flash point and world needs to look into Indian defence minister’s remarks about use of nuclear weapons. “Responsible states do not talk like the way Rajnath Singh did,” he said.
The committee headed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi comprises ISI chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, ISPR DG Major General Asif Ghafoor, Law Minister Farogh Nasim, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan, parliamentary committee on Kashmir chairperson Fakhar Imam and Attorney General of Pakistan Anwar Mansoor Khan.
