Indian position on Kashmir rejected
THE spokesman of the UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric responding to the question of a journalist regarding UN position on Kashmir dispute during a press briefing said” Our position on Kashmir is well established and has not changed. You will find it in relevant resolutions.”
This reiteration coinciding with the completion of two years of unilateral scrapping of special status of IIOJ&K by India and the statement by her permanent representative at the UN of claiming that the state was integral part of India, constitutes a ranting rejection of the Indian position on the Kashmir dispute.
It is not for the first time that the UN has reaffirmed the resolution of the dispute in accordance with the UNICEP resolutions of 13 August 1948 and January 1949.
In regards to the UN resolution on Kashmir it is relevant to point out that in the wake of the war that broke out between the two countries after the landing of Indian forces in Kashmir, it was India which took the matter to the United Nations.
The UN resolutions vividly recognized the right of self-determination of the people of Kashmir to decide in regards to accession of the state to either Pakistan or India.
It is also pertinent to mention that the UN through its resolutions 91 and 122 also repudiated Indian stance that the issue of accession of Kashmir had been resolved by the Constituent Assembly of Kashmir.
These resolutions re-emphasized that the question of accession could not be resolved by any means other than enunciated in the UN resolutions on the subject.
This proves beyond any doubt that the Indian claims of travesty of the facts and lack any legal basis.
In the wake of the revocation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution by the Modi Government ending special status of the state and its annexation to the Indian Union, the UNSC in its three informal meetings also reiterated that the question of Kashmir needed to be resolved in accordance with the principles of UN Charter and the relevant resolutions.
It is also pertinent to point out the global community by and large also refused to accept Indian narrative that the action taken by it in regards to IIOJ&K was its internal matter.
The killing spree in the state by the Indian security forces and blatant abuse of human rights has continuously been reported by the international media and the human rights organizations as well as UNOHCR.
The Indian move of 05 August 2019 and the promulgation of the new domicile law designed to change demographic features of the state, undoubtedly, constitute breach of the UN resolutions, international law and 4th Geneva Convention according to which the occupying force cannot take any action to change the demographic realities in the occupied land.
From the foregoing facts it is quite evident that Indian position on Kashmir lacks any moral and legal legitimacy.
Its intransigence to fulfil its commitment as enshrined in the UN resolutions and the action of 05 August have put peace and security of the region at peril.
The Indian leaders inebriated by the RSS philosophy of ‘Hindutva’ which derives inspiration from the racist doctrine of Hitler, probably feel that they can get away with their actions.
They are sadly mistaken and have turned a blind eye to the historic realities and the fate that Hitler’s philosophy met in the end.
Hate philosophies not only spell disaster for other states but also prove disastrous for the state practising it.
The people of Kashmir through their unabated resistance to the Indian oppression have unequivocally made a statement that they would continue their struggle for freedom irrespective of the cost that they have to pay for it.
Pakistan, as a stakeholder, has also made it clear that it would continue to lend moral, political and diplomatic support to their cause through continuous efforts to rattle the conscience of the international community and impressing upon the UN to fulfil its obligations towards the people of Kashmir.
Indian belligerent stance towards Pakistan is also not going to help India in achieving her nefarious designs. India and Pakistan both are nuclear states and neighbours to each other.
India cannot browbeat Pakistan in giving up its support for the people of Kashmir as the latter is fully capable of thwarting her aggressive designs.
The indiscretion committed by the Modi government on 26 February 2019 to attack imaginary terrorist camps in Balakot and the response given by Pakistan amply proves that point.
Modi had to regret the indiscretion saying that the position would have been different had India acquired the French Rafale fighter planes.
The security situation in South Asia is quite precarious and Kashmir admittedly is a nuclear flash point. The military confrontation between India and Pakistan could have catastrophic consequences.
It is therefore incumbent upon the UN and the world community to realize the gravity of the situation and put pressure on India to resolve the Kashmir dispute in conformity with the UN resolutions.
The powers which are encouraging India to continue with her oppression in IIOJ&K and aggressive designs against Pakistan must also realize that they were following a very dangerous path.
Any military conflict between India and Pakistan would not only destroy the chances of regional peace and security but would also deal a fatal blow to their strategic interests in this area.
Indian leaders must also realize that no matter what they did it would be impossible for them to keep Kashmir under subjugation by force.
Continuation of that policy would also undermine her own economic and security interests. History will never forgive them for their improvidence.
— The writer is former Director General Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, based in Islamabad.
