New Delhi:Terming it “fallacious, tendentious and motivated,” India on Thursday rejected UN reports alleging human rights violation in Kashmir. In a strong reaction, the Ministry of External Affairs said the report is “overtly prejudiced” and seeks to build a “false narrative.”
Stating that the UN report “violates India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” India questioned the intent behind the report. It also reiterated that “the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. Pakistan is in illegal and forcible occupation of a part of the Indian state through aggression.”
Presenting a first kind of report on alleged human rights violation in Jammu and Kashmir, UN human rights body chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein has called for a probe into “all civilian killings since July 2016” and also into “the excessive use of force by security forces, including serious injuries caused by the use of pellet guns immediately.”
The UN body chief said he would urge the Human Rights Council, which opens a new session next week, “to consider establishing a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) to conduct a comprehensive independent international investigation into allegations of human rights violations in Kashmir.”
In its 49-page report, the UN body says India must stop using pellet guns for crowd control. It also talked about the killing of Hizbul Mujahudeen terrorist Burhan Wani by Indian security forces.
On Kashmir territory under Pakistan’s control, the UN report identifies “a range of human rights abuses,” but notes they “are of a different calibre or magnitude and of a more structural nature.”
The rights office also says restrictions on freedom of expression and assembly make it difficult to get information about conditions in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Pakistan should “end the misuse of anti-terror legislation to persecute those engaging in peaceful political and civil activities and those who express dissent,” the UN report says.
