India calls UNGA Prez's remarks on J&K misleading, prejudiced

Ministry of External Affairs stated the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Volkan Bozkir's remarks on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir were misleading and prejudiced. Bozkir during his two day visit to Pakistan asked Indian and Pakistan to pursue the path for peaceful resolution of the issue.

New Delhi:India on Friday strongly opposed the remarks made by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Volkan Bozkir with regards to the issue of Jammu and Kashmir.

In response to a media query on the matter, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, said, "We express our strong opposition to the unwarranted references made concerning the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) Volkan Bozkir during his recent visit to Pakistan."

This comes after Bozkir, who was on an official visit to Pakistan from May 26 to May 28, called upon India and Pakistan to pursue the path for peaceful resolution of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. He also urged all parties to refrain from changing the status of the disputed territory.

According to spokesperson of Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held delegation-level talks with Bozkir.

During the talk, "UNGA Prez reiterated that the UN's stance on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is governed by the UN Charter and relevant UNSC resolutions, calling for a ‘free and impartial plebiscite under the UN auspices'," Chaudhri tweeted.

Both the leaders discussed a wide range of political and socio-economic issues on the UN agenda, including the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, situation in Palestine, Afghan peace process, reform of the UN Security Council, equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines and financing for sustainable development.

The Foreign Minister apprised Bozkir about the "grave human rights and humanitarian situation" in Indian "Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK)", he said.

Qureshi also stressed that India’s systematic efforts to change the demographic structure of the occupied territory were in contravention of international law, including the fourth Geneva Convention. His remarks that Pakistan is "duty-bound” to raise this issue in the UN more strongly is unacceptable. Indeed there is no basis for comparison to other global situations, MEA spokesperson Bagchi said.

The MEA underlined that when an incumbent President of the UN General Assembly makes misleading and prejudiced remarks, he does a great disservice to the office he occupies. "The PGA’s behaviour is truly regrettable and surely diminishes his standing on the global platform", the MEA said in a statement.