Strongly objecting the wicked move of Pakistan to officially merge Gigit Baltistan, the Pakistan occupied part of the Jammu and Kashmir, India said that that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country’s forcible occupation has no legal basis.
On Sunday India summoned Pakistan deputy envoy to lodge a strong protest over Islamabad’s Gilgit-Baltistan order which will alter the status of the region that so far had special status. India also said that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of the J&K by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan occupied territories for the past seven decades
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation. The staement further confirmed that the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan to India was summoned on Sunday and a strong protest was made against Government of Pakistan’s so-called ‘Gilgit Baltistan Order 2018’. It was clearly conveyed that the entire State of Jammu & Kashmir which also includes the so-called ‘Gilgit-Baltistan’ area, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.
India’s summoning Pakistan envoy was a recation to the Gilgit-Baltistan government’s attemts to promulgate the Gilgit-Baltistan Order-2018, replacing the GB Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of 2009 nwhich confers ‘special status’ to Gilgit Baltistan wchich provides political, administrative, financial and judicial powers to GB.
Dawn reports: The new order has been approved by the federal cabinet and President Mamnoon Hussain will issue a notification regarding its enforcement on the advice of the prime minister on Tuesday. Addressing a press conference on Monday, GB Law Minister Aurangzeb Khan and Adviser on Information Shams Mir said the new order was protected by the Constitution of Pakistan. Reports also say that after the approval of the GB Order-2018 by the federal cabinet and endorsement by the National Security Council, the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly also approved it.
Reacting to this, MEA conveyed Pakistan envoy that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of the J&K by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan occupied territories for the past seven decades.
MEA added that India’s consistent position in the matter is reflected in the resolution passed by the Parliament in 1994 by consensus.
The ‘Gilgit-Baltistan Order (GBO)’, 2018, which essentially seizes the powers of Gilgit Baltistan Council and entrusts Prime Minister of Pakistan with indisputable authorities vis-a-vis Gilgit-Baltistan, was officially promulgated on May 21. Thousands of people in Gilgit-Baltistan region protested the GBO on Friday.
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