India rejects UN special rapporteur’s remarks on J&K, calls it ‘baseless’ and ‘unwarranted allegations’

On Tuesday, India lambasted the UN special rapporteur on minority issues Fernand de Varennes, calling his statement on Jammu and Kashmir baseless and unwarranted allegations.

New Delhi: India on Tuesday lambasted the UN special rapporteur on minority issues Fernand de Varennes, calling his statement on Jammu and Kashmir baseless and unwarranted allegations. "As G20 President, it's India’s prerogative to host its meetings in any part of the country", the government said.

The reaction comes after the UN special rapporteur in a statement said that holding a G20 meeting in Jammu and Kashmir while massive human rights violations are ongoing is an attempt by India to normalize the brutal and repressive denial of democratic and other rights of Kashmiri Muslims and minorities. His statement comes one week before a G20 meeting is scheduled in Srinagar.

"We @IndiaUNGeneva strongly reject the statement issued by SR on minority issues @fernanddev & the baseless & unwarranted allegations in it. As G20 President, it is India’s prerogative to host its meetings in any part of the country", the Indian mission in Geneva tweeted on Tuesday.

"We are aghast that @fernanddev has acted irresponsibly to politicize this issue, and misused his position as SR to publicize on social media his presumptive and prejudiced conclusions in a gross violation of the Code of Conduct for SRs", the embassy tweeted.

The UN expert on minority issues further said in the statement that human rights violations have risen dramatically in Indian-administered Kashmir since 2019 when the government of India revoked the special status of the region. By holding the G20 meeting of the working group on tourism on May 22-24 warned Fernand de Varennes, "the government of India is seeking to normalize what some have described as a military occupation by instrumentalizing a G20 meeting and portray an international seal of approval”.

Rejecting the statement, India said that Varennes misused his position to spread presumptive conclusions terming it a gross violation of the code of conduct. The independent expert noted that there have been reports of significant numbers of Hindus from outside the region moving into the region so that dramatic demographic changes are underway in Jammu and Kashmir to overwhelm native Kashmiris in their land.

"International human rights obligations and the UN Declaration of Human Rights should still be upheld by organizations such as the G20,” he added. "The situation in Jammu and Kashmir should be decried and condemned, not pushed under the rug and ignored with the holding of this meeting," the statement read.

According to him, the G20 is unwittingly providing a veneer of support to a façade of normalcy at a time when massive human rights violations, illegal and arbitrary arrests, political persecution, restrictions, and even suppression of free media and human rights defenders continue to escalate.

Taking Twitter, Fernand de Varenness said,” Holding a g20 meeting in Jammu and Kashmir while massive human rights violations are ongoing is lending support to attempts by India to normalize the brutal & repressive denial of democratic & other rights of Kashmiri Muslims and minorities”.

Pakistan has also opposed India holding the G20 meeting in the disputed region of Kashmir, calling it an irresponsible move. However, India rejected Pak’s objection to the G20 meeting in J&K.