‘Dressing up massacre as military operation won’t absolve perpetrator’: India slams Pakistan at UN
NEW DELHI, JUN 9 : India launched a sharp attack on Pakistan at the United Nations Security Council, accusing Islamabad of carrying out military airstrikes in Afghanistan that have caused significant civilian casualties and denouncing “officially sponsored misinformation” through Pakistan’s ‘Fitna al-Hindustan’ directive.
Speaking during the UNSC meeting on the ‘Situation in Afghanistan’ on Monday, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni, condemned Pakistan’s actions, accusing it of undermining Afghanistan’s sovereignty and regional stability.
“Pakistan’s campaign of military airstrikes against Afghanistan is causing huge civilian casualties and suffering to the Afghan people. Such unconscionable acts of violence are a blatant assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty and a threat to the region’s peace and stability,” Parvathaneni said.
India strongly condemned the strikes, calling them violations of international law, the UN Charter, and the principle of state sovereignty.
Citing data from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), Parvathaneni said 372 civilians had been killed and 397 injured in the first three months of the year, with most casualties reported during the holy month of Ramadan.
“No faith, no law and no morality can justify such actions,” he said.
In a pointed remark directed at Pakistan, India asserted,”dressing up a massacre as a military operation does not absolve the perpetrator. Killing, maiming and orphaning civilians is not counter terrorism.”
“Espousing high principles of international law and Islamic solidarity while mercilessly carrying out air strikes during the holy month of Ramadan is the perfect example of hypocrisy,” Parvathaneni said.
The Indian envoy also accused Pakistan of deflecting blame for domestic failures.
“blaming neighbours for its own failures is an old Pakistani habit. This attempt to hoodwink the world will fail,” he said.
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Harish Parvathaneni.
Not normal to tolerate Pak’s continued use of terror as instrument of state policy: India at UNSC
India also rejected Pakistan’s decision to label groups operating within its borders as ‘Fitna al Hindustan’, calling it an attempt to institutionalise anti-India rhetoric.
“Coming up with official notifications, directing Pakistan’s Government agencies to start referring to groups inside its own borders as ‘Fitna al Hindustan’ is nothing but officially sponsored misinformation and disinformation dressed in religious terminology,” Parvathaneni said.
“This is an outcome of an organised factory of hate coming from the deep state of Pakistan, which aims to keep its citizens in a state of permanent hostility with India in order to perpetuate their stay in power and control of national resources and distract them from core political and economic problems,” he added.
Parvathaneni further referred to Pakistan’s 27th Constitutional Amendment, saying, “The de facto coup by the military through the 27th Constitutional amendment is only its most recent manifestation.”
India also criticised “trade and transit terrorism” by Pakistan against Afghanistan, accusing Islamabad of blocking access for Afghan traders in violation of global commitments.
Parvathaneni said India, a major destination for Afghan exports, offers tariff-free market access to Afghan goods and has operationalised a dedicated air freight corridor between the two countries.
He added that India was supporting Afghan traders through gratis long-term business visas for those “suffering under unprecedented ‘trade and transit terrorism’ inflicted upon them by Pakistan’s denial of passage for trade.”
“The cynical closure of access for this land-locked country is in total violation of UN declarations on Land Locked Developing countries (LLDCs) and a clear weaponisation of their trade and transit vulnerabilities. This blatant Pakistani violation of WTO norms and of the UN Charter and international law should be condemned by the global community,” he said.
Responding during the session, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, questioned the UN Secretary-General’s report on Afghanistan, saying it appeared to largely “externalise” responsibility for the country’s challenges.
“The fatalities of terrorists and their supporters as a result of CT (counter-terror) operations are mentioned within the ambit of ‘civilian casualties’, posing serious questions on the credibility of UNAMA’s reporting from Afghanistan and the nature of their engagement with the Taliban,” Ahmad said.
Countering Pakistan’s remarks, Parvathaneni said: “We would like to stress that support for multilateralism and the United Nations is not an a la carte menu.”
India also reiterated its firm stance against terrorism, calling for coordinated global efforts to dismantle terror groups operating across borders.
“Only coordinated efforts of the international community can ensure that ISIL and Al Qaida and their affiliates, including the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammed and proxies of LeT such as The Resistance Front, along with those who facilitate their operations, no longer indulge in cross-border terrorism,” he said, urging the international community to work together towards this “noble goal.”
-PTI
