: India aghast as UK Parliament debates Kashmir #IndiaNEWS #International London: India has expressed its dismay at some of the parliamentarians who participated in a debate on Kashmir in the Houses

India aghast as UK Parliament debates Kashmir #IndiaNEWS #International
London: India has expressed its dismay at some of the parliamentarians who participated in a debate on Kashmir in the Houses of Parliament complex in London relying on ‘false assertions’ and unsubstantiated allegations propagated by a ‘third country’– an apparent reference to Pakistan.
The debate, organised by backbench British MPs at Westminster Hall in the House of Commons on Wednesday evening, was entitled “Political situation in Kashmir??? – terminology the Indian High Commission in London pointed out as problematic in itself.
“Regarding the reference to ‘Kashmir in the title: the need is felt to differentiate between the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral part of India, and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (when the erstwhile princely state of Kashmir legally acceded to India in October 1947, this part was forcibly and illegally occupied by Pakistan),??? the High Commission said in a statement.
“It was also noted that references to the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, despite the volumes of authentic information available in the public domain – based on up to date and visible facts on the ground – ignored current ground reality and, instead chose to reflect false assertions of the kind promoted by a third country, such as unsubstantiated allegations of ‘genocide, ‘rampant violence and ‘torture,??? it noted.
Responding to the debate on behalf of the UK government, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) minister Nigel Adams had reiterated the official stance that it is not for Britain to play any mediatory role in a bilateral India-Pakistan matter, even as he accepted there were human rights concerns on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC).
“The governments policy [on Kashmir] remains stable, its unchanged. We continue to believe that this is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting political resolution to the situation that takes into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people… as laid out in the Simla Agreement,??? said Adams, in his capacity as Minister for Asia.
“Its not appropriate for the UK government to prescribe a solution or act as a mediator in this regard but it would be wrong to not acknowledge there are serious human rights concerns in both India-administered and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. This has been confirmed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in his reports,??? he said.
The minister also made a reference to the District Development Council (DDC) democratic elections held in the region in December last year, which Labour Party MP Barry Gardiner pointed out attracted the free and fair participation of over 50 per cent of the local electorate.

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