Pakistan Must End Repression In Illegally Occupied Territories: India Tells UN

India has said that Pakistan, long dominated by its military establishment, cannot grasp the principles of democracy and constitutional governance, and should end the widespread repression in the territories it continues to occupy illegally.

“The people of Jammu and Kashmir exercise their fundamental rights in accordance with India’s time-tested democratic traditions and constitutional framework,” India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, P Harish, stated on Friday.

“We, of course, know that these are concepts alien to Pakistan,” he further added.

“We call upon Pakistan to end the grave and ongoing human rights violations in the areas illegally occupied by it, where the population is in open revolt against Pakistan’s military occupation, repression, brutality and illegal exploitation of resources,” P Harish urged.

The exchange took place during a meeting of the UN Security Council marking the 80th anniversary of the organisation, held under the theme ‘Looking into the Future’.

Historical Dispute and Ongoing Crackdown

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, used his remarks to revisit historical grievances, referring back to 1948 and making what India called ‘a misleading statement’.

Ahmad claimed that the Security Council’s resolution on a plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir remained unimplemented.

Resolution 47, adopted in April 1948, first required Pakistan to withdraw all its military forces, security personnel, and civilians from the territory it had invaded.

In the areas Pakistan continues to occupy, local Kashmiris have reportedly risen up against its rule, and it has responded with force.

At least 12 people killed last month in a violent crackdown, according to Indian statements.

India has argued that Pakistan’s references to a UN plebiscite are irrelevant, as Pakistan never fulfilled the resolution’s precondition of withdrawing its military forces.

Meanwhile, the people of Jammu and Kashmir within India’s borders have become part of the country’s democratic process.

Harish accused Pakistan of distorting the historical record while continuing to violate both the UN resolution and the human rights of those living under its occupation.

Jaishankar Highlights Pakistan’s Role in Terrorism

Earlier, in New Delhi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke at an event marking 80 years of the United Nations and highlighted another concern, Pakistan’s role in international terrorism.

He criticised the UN’s inadequate response to global terrorism and, without naming Pakistan directly, noted the irony of a country that shelters terrorists holding a seat on the Security Council.

“Few examples are more telling about the challenges facing the UN than its response to terrorism,” Harish noted.

“When a sitting Security Council member openly protects the very organisation that claims responsibility for the barbaric terror attack, such as at Pahalgam, what does it do to the credibility of multilateralism?” he questioned.

P Harish further added, “Similarly, if victims and perpetrators of terrorism are equated in the name of global strategy, how much more cynical can the world get. When self-proclaimed terrorists are shielded from the sanctioning process, what does it say for the sincerity of those involved?”

India noted that the terrorist group The Resistance Front, responsible for the April attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians, and its sponsor organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), continue to operate with Pakistan’s protection.

Meanwhile, Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the LeT chief under UN sanctions, remains active in Pakistan, further highlighting what India called Islamabad’s ‘double standards’ on terrorism.

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