Pakistan observing August 5 – the day that Article 370 of the Constitution was abrogated in 2019 – as “Youm-e-Istehsal”, or the day of exploitation, was “political absurdity” and “malicious propaganda” against India, stated the Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday.

The article gave special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. While abrogating it, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government had also bifurcated the state into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar recently said that the Indian government’s decision had posed a “grave challenge” to the established international framework and expressed solidarity with the residents of Jammu and Kashmir, The Indian Express reported.

“We reaffirm our unwavering support for their [Kashmiris] fundamental rights, as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and reflected in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” the newspaper quoted him as saying. He added that the developments of August 5, 2019, continued to be a “matter of deep concern”.

Responding to a question about Dar’s comment, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Wednesday that the abrogation of Article 370 was an internal matter of India and Pakistan has no authority to comment on it.

Describing Pakistan as “the global epicentre of terrorism”, Jaiswal added that Islamabad was peddling falsehoods to divert international attention from its own “dismal human rights record”.

“The international community is currently witnessing the brutal suppression of fundamental rights in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

In recent weeks, Pakistani security forces have resorted to “lethal violence, targeted killings and draconian bans to silence peaceful civil rights protests” in the country, added Jaiswal.

Residents of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir have been protesting against rising inflation and an opaque system of governance, according to media reports. Tensions escalated on June 5 when authorities banned the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee, a pressure group, for holding demonstrations.

“Instead of engaging in predictable diplomatic theatre, Pakistan would be well-advised to stop the bloodshed in PoJK [Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir], take credible, verifiable, and irreversible action against terror networks operating from its soil, and immediately vacate all Indian territories under its illegal and forcible occupation,” said the spokesperson.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Sneha.

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