India has conveyed its strong protest to Pakistan over an order by the Pak supreme court allowing the conduct of general elections in Gilgit-Baltistan.
New Delhi: Efforts by Pakistan to “bring material change in Pak occupied areas” in Jammu and Kashmir have been strongly protested by India and has said Islamabad must “immediately vacate them.”
An order by the Pakistani Supreme Court on Gilgit-Baltistan now allows building a caretaker administration in Gilgit-Baltistan to hold fresh elections.
Today, India delivered a demarche to a senior Pakistan diplomat conveying that “the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of India” by virtue of its fully legal and irrevocable accession.
New Delhi said that the Pakistani government or its court has no locus standi on regions illegally and forcibly occupied by Islamabad.
“India completely rejects such actions and continued attempts to bring material changes in Pakistan occupied areas of the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Instead, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation,” said India in its note.
India claims the whole of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the Gilgit-Baltistan region.
Also Read: Editorial with Sujit Nair: India Hyphenated with Pakistan
Gilgit-Baltistan was given near-provincial status by the Pakistani government in 2009.
On April 30, Pakistanās Supreme Court allowed the government to amend the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 to set up a custodian administration in the region to conduct fresh elections. The order was issued in response to an appeal filed by the Imran Khan-led government.
The term of the prevailing government in Gilgit-Baltistan is set to end on June 24 and elections have to be held within 60 days.
The statement said that the Indian governmentās position on Gilgit Baltistan is indicated in the resolution passed by Parliament in 1994 by consensus.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
