AJK president terms Indian protest against UK envoy’s visit to Azad Kashmir ridiculous

ISLAMABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry on Monday, while rejecting India’s protest against British High Commissioner Jane Marriott’s recent visit to Mirpur, termed the Indian government’s contention on the matter as highly ‘ridiculous’.

The AJK president said that the Indian government that hosted G20 summit events in the Illegally Occupied Kashmir last year has no moral or legal justification to lodge a protest over the UK envoy’s visit to Mirpur.

“India has no moral or legal justification to raise objections over the foreign diplomats’ visits to Azad Kashmir,” he said, adding that the envoys of different countries have visited the region (Azad Kashmir) before, and they will continue to do so in the future.

Terming Kashmir as an internationally recognised disputed territory, Barrister Chaudhry said that Kashmir has never been the part of India. He further advised India to refrain from its expansionist designs and realise the ground reality that it could no longer hold Kashmiris hostage by the dint of force.

The AJK president said that the political and human rights situation in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K) has further worsened since August 5, 2019. He urged the international community to take note of the fast deteriorating political and human rights situation in the region. “The international community should take notice of the crimes committed against Kashmiris by the Indian occupation forces.”

He said it was high time the influential world governments should play their role to help stop bloodshed and violence in the IIOJ&K.