Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations – Maleeha Lodhi has said that the highest world forum, the UN Security Council has heard the voice of the people of Jammu and Kashmir at its consultative meeting in New York on the request of Pakistan and China.
Talking to media along with Chinese envoy to the United Nations, after the UNSC meeting in New York, she said all the fifteen permanent and non-permanent member countries attended the consultative session.
She said the meeting took stock of the plight and sufferings of the people of the Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of unilateral Indian move to change the status of the held valley.
Maleeha Lodhi said this UNSC meeting is the testimony of the validity of the UN resolutions on the Kashmir dispute and it has nullified Indian claims that Kashmir is their internal matter.
Indian Version
India said that the country’s national position was and remains that matters related to Kashmir are “entirely an internal matter”. Syed Akbaruddin, India’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN Security, said that New Delhi is committed to slowly removing all restrictions in Kashmir and the government is undertaking steps towards normalcy.
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“Prevention is better than cure. Measures we took were preventive in nature. These efforts sometimes lead to restrictions. There was not one fatality,” Akbaruddin told reporters at the UN.
“These have no external ramifications, the recent decisions taken by the Government of India and our legislative bodies are intended to ensure that good governance is promoted, social-economic development is enhanced for our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh,” he said.
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Akbaruddin said Islamabad should stop terrorism and start talks. He said Pakistan was trying to project a scaremonger approach to the situation which is far from actualities.
“Of particular concern is that one state is using the terminology of ‘jihad’ against and promoting violence in India including by their leaders,” he said.
The outcome of the UNSC meeting will not be a formal declaration as the consultations are informal in nature. India and Pakistan did not attend the meeting, as only the five permanent members and 10 non-permanent members formed the panel.
