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This story is from September 19, 2017

Pak again brings up Kashmir at UN forum, India hits back calling it 'face of international terror'

India has been going after Pakistan hammer and tongs lately at international forums and at bilateral meetings and yesterday at the UN Human Rights Congress, it called its neighbour "the face of international terrorism" and said it is pursuing "perverse political objectives".
Pakistan is 'face of international terrorism': India at UNHRC
Key Highlights
  • India accused Pakistan of pursuing "perverse political objectives"
  • It talked of how Pakistan is once again misusing an international platform"
  • Just last Friday, Pakistan, using the OIC Islamic nations' grouping as cover, spoke of rights violations in Kashmir
NEW DELHI: India has lately been going hammer and tongs at Pakistan, at international forums and at bilateral meetings, with the newest salvo fired yesterday at the 36th UN Human Rights Congress (UNHRC) when it called its neighbour "the face of international terrorism" and accused it of pursuing "perverse political objectives".
To be sure, some of these occasions that India has criticised Pakistan have been after the latter, as it its wont, has brought up the issue of Kashmir at international forums, like it did at the UNHRC yesterday and like it did last Friday at the UN in New York.

Pakistan often looks for ways to bring up the bilateral issue of Kashmir on global forums, even though it has been told many times, by both the UN and the US - but not by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) - that issues to do with the troubled state are the business of India and Pakistan alone.
That doesn't appear to matter to Pakistan.
In Geneva, at the UNHRC session that ended yesterday, Pakistan said: "...human needs, desires and the right to self-determination" are "being abused" in Kashmir". It then talked of "10,000 persons ... detained and tortured" in the state, according to a UNHRC statement on its proceedings.
India then exercised its 'right of reply', to savage Pakistan and to talk of how it is once again misusing an international platform. India also said that Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir "is run by a 'deep state' and has become an epicentre of terrorism" where as Kashmiris in J&K have time and again reaffirmed their destiny through India's democratic processes.

"Pakistan has been misusing this august platform to pursue its perverse political objectives...Pakistan's unsolicited and unwarranted comments pertaining to the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir are factually incorrect and absolutely misleading. We outrightly (sic) reject them," said Vishnu Reddy, Indian Foreign Service officer and India's representative at the UNHRC.

Using to its advantage, the fact Pakistan came under acute fire last month from US President Donald Trump , and the fact that Pakistan's foreign minister recently admitted - for the first time - that terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) do indeed operate on its soil, India lost no time in telling the UNHRC that Pakistan is the "the face of international terrorism". The world is concerned, added India.
"In the wake of growing international concern, Pakistan must shut down its terrorist manufacturing units and bring the perpetrators of terrorism to justice," said India, echoing Trump's statement that Pakistan was providing "safe haven to agents of chaos, violence and terror."
India then talked of Pakistan's human rights record.
"Its (Pakistan's) human rights record in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir and Baluchistan is deplorable. Pakistan is known for using air-power and artillery against its own people, not once but repeatedly over the years, said India's Reddy.
Instead of raising the issue of Kashmir repeatedly at international forums, Pakistan would do well to "to do some deep introspection and focus its energies on improving the human rights situation and dismantling the terrorist infrastructure", said Reddy.
Just last Friday, Pakistan, using the OIC Islamic nations' grouping as cover, spoke of rights violations in Kashmir.
India firmly and unequivocally told the OIC that it would be better off not commenting on India's internal affairs.
The OIC "has no locus standi on India's internal affairs, we strongly advise the OIC to refrain from making such references in future," said Sumit Seth, first secretary at the Permanent Mission of India to UN, on Friday.
Last month, the US again said Kashmir is an issue for India and Pakistan to discuss.
"In terms of Kashmir, our policy has not changed. We continue to encourage the sides to sit down and talk," said US state department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
Read this story in Malayalam
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