India strongly criticized Pakistan for bringing up the Kashmir issue during the 151st Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Geneva. Lok Sabha MP Aprajita Sarangi, speaking on behalf of India, said that Jammu and Kashmir “has been, is, and shall always remain an integral and inalienable part of India” and denounced Islamabad’s attempt to politicize a global forum.
Her comments followed Pakistan’s attempts to internationalize the issue during India’s Right of Reply.
Pakistan’s interventions, according to Sarangi, are “habitual propaganda and baseless allegations” devoid of any supporting evidence. She emphasized that Pakistan’s concerns were outside the purview of the IPU and did not deserve any attention in a conference devoted to international development and parliamentary cooperation.
She emphasized that Pakistan had no right to remark on India’s internal affairs and that Jammu and Kashmir’s accession to India was both legal and permanent.
Sarangi pointedly cited Islamabad’s history when he said that Pakistan kept causing regional instability by encouraging cross-border terrorism. She insisted that Pakistan, not India, is occupying areas that are legally India’s and should be given up. She asserts that Pakistan’s refusal to accept normalcy and growth in the Union Territory is reflected in every effort to thwart peace and advancement in Jammu & Kashmir.
Speaking on the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), Sarangi said that although it was signed with good intentions, current circumstances had made it obsolete. The circumstances under which the treaty formerly functioned have changed due to technological advancements, demographic shifts, and ongoing terrorist actions supported from across the border. She reaffirmed that even while India is still dedicated to its international responsibilities, the treaty’s functioning cannot go on unhindered when Pakistan consistently acts hostilely in violation of its spirit.
Sarangi explained that these persistent infractions are the reason behind India’s decision to put the IWT on hold. Her remarks were in line with a larger Indian narrative that Pakistan alone is responsible for reestablishing positive engagement. Islamabad cannot assert moral or political authority to discuss matters pertaining to India’s sovereignty until it stops aiding terrorism and leaves illegally occupied Indian territory.
India used the assembly, which brought together lawmakers from all around the world to talk about issues like peace, security, and sustainable development, as another opportunity to draw attention to Pakistan’s hypocrisy. India reaffirmed its long-standing stance that Kashmir is an internal affair and that any attempt to internationalize it is unacceptable in a composed but forceful statement. Additionally, the intervention reaffirmed India’s willingness to participate in international affairs while denying that Pakistan’s “habitual propaganda” might compromise its national integrity.
