Jaishankar’s remarks on AJK another example of India’s aggressive rhetoric

The latest remarks by India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) are yet another example of India’s aggressive rhetoric and historical distortion of facts.

The News International in its editorial today said, “Speaking at Chatham House in London, Jaishankar claimed that the Kashmir dispute would be solved once the “stolen part of Kashmir” — referring to AJK — was returned to India.

It said such statements are not only misleading but also an outright dismissal of international law and historical realities. It added that the Foreign Office (FO) of Pakistan has rightfully rejected these claims, urging India instead to vacate the illegally occupied territories of Jammu and Kashmir, which have remained under its brutal control for 77 years.

The editorial said, “Occupied Kashmir is not merely a territorial dispute but an issue of the fundamental rights of its people. Despite India’s repeated assertions that the revocation of Article 370 in 2019 has resolved the Kashmir conflict, the reality on the ground tells a different story. The abrogation of Kashmir’s special status has only intensified the oppression of the Kashmiri people, exacerbating their struggles under India’s military occupation. The recent elections in Indian-occupied Kashmir cannot be considered a substitute for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination, as enshrined in multiple United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.”