GENEVA: India on Tuesday slammed Pakistan at the United Nations Human Right Council (UNHRC) for deliberately misusing the forum for its “malicious propaganda” against New Delhi.
Pawankumar Badhe, first secretary of India’s Permanent Mission in Geneva also hit out at the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) for its statement on Jammu and Kashmir, saying the body has no locus standi to comment on such matters.
Using its Right of Reply under the Agenda Item 2 at the 46th Session of the UNHRC in response to a statement by Pakistan’s representative, Badhe said: “Pakistan’s deliberate misuse of this august forum for its malicious propaganda against India, aimed at diverting the attention of the Council from its own serious violations of human rights, has remained a constant.”
“We reject the reference to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir in the statement of the OIC. It has no locus standi to comment on matters related to Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral and inalienable part of India,” said Pawankumar Badhe.
India said that Pakistan, a country in dire economic situation, should stop state-sponsored cross-border terrorism and end institutionalised violation of human rights of its minority and other communities.
“Pakistan, a country in dire economic situation, will be well advised to stop wasting time of the Council and its mechanisms, stop state-sponsored cross-border terrorism and end institutionalised violation of human rights of its minority and other communities,” Pawankumar Badhe said.
“The members of this Council are well aware that Pakistan has provided pensions to dreaded and listed terrorists out of State funds and has the dubious distinction of hosting the largest number of terrorists proscribed by the United Nations,” Badhe said.
The Indian diplomat recalled that Pakistani leaders have admitted the fact that “it has become a factory for producing terrorists.”
“Pakistan has ignored that terrorism is the worst form of human rights abuse and the supporters of terrorism are the worst abusers of human rights,” the Indian diplomat added.
Badhe said the Council should ask Pakistan why the size of its minority communities such as Christians, Hindus and Sikhs has drastically shrunk since independence and why they and other communities such as Ahmadiyyas, Shias, Pashtuns, Sindhis and Baloch, have been subjected to draconian blasphemy laws, systemic persecution, blatant abuses and forced conversions.
“Enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and arbitrary detentions of those who try to speak against the establishment are rampant in Pakistan and have been carried out by the State’s security agencies with impunity,” the diplomat said.
(With agency inputs)