Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Pakistan on Saturday rejected the Indian authorities’ move to grant domicile certificates of Indian-occupied Kashmir reportedly to thousands of Indian nationals, terming it a part of New Delhi’s attempt to change the demographic structure of the disputed region.
As many as 25,000 non-locals have been granted domicile certificates in Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir since May 18, which local politicians believe is the beginning of a move to disturb the demographic profile of the region, Anadolu Agency reported.
The certificate, a sort of citizenship right, entitles a person to residency and government jobs in the region, which until last year were reserved only for the local population.
The documents issued to non-Kashmiris, including Indian government officials, under the Jammu and Kashmir Grant of Domicile Certificate (Procedure), 2020, are “illegal, void and in complete violation of the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and international law including the 4th Geneva Convention”, Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said in a statement.
She said the latest action by New Delhi is “a vindication of Pakistan’s consistent stance” that a major intention behind India’s move to annex occupied Kashmir on August 5 last year was to change the demographic structure of the region and “turn Kashmiris into a minority in their own land”.
“This has long been [a] part of the RSS-BJP’s ‘Hindutva’ agenda,” she added, saying the Kashmiris too have rejected the “bogus” domicile certificates.
Farooqui said the Indian government by changing the demographic make-up of occupied Kashmir intends to undermine its residents’ exercise of their right to self-determination through a free and impartial plebiscite under the UN supervision.
Through these actions, it also seeks to further perpetuate India’s occupation of the Valley while continuing other rights abuses including continued restrictions on daily life, an “excruciating” military crackdown, extra-judicial killings and arbitrary detentions, the spokesperson noted in the statement.
