India on Tuesday opposed Pakistan’s plans to hold elections in the disputed Gilgit-Baltistan region and make it the neighboring country’s fifth province, saying Islamabad would not be able to make material changes to the areas under its illegal occupation.
The two countries have clashed several times in recent weeks over the state of Gilgit-Baltistan, part of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, and raised the issue with international bodies such as the UN.
The Pakistani government plans to hold an election for the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly on November 15, after which it will move towards converting the region into a province in its own right.
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“We have seen reports about the announcement of elections to the legislative assembly called ‘Gilgit-Baltistan’ to be held on November 15, 2020. The government of India has conveyed its strong protest to the government of Pakistan and reiterated that the entire union territories Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the so-called Gilgit and Baltistan areas, are an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947, ”the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Pakistani government “has no locus standi in the illegally and forcibly occupied territories,” the statement said.
The Indian government has “completely rejected recent actions such as the so-called ‘Gilgit-Baltistan Amendment Order 2020 (Elections and Provisional Government)’ and the continued attempts by the establishment of Pakistan to introduce material changes in the areas under its illegal and forced occupation. “the statement further said.
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Actions such as these cannot “hide Pakistan’s illegal occupation of parts of the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, nor the serious human rights violations, exploitation and denial of liberty to the people residing in the territories occupied by Pakistan during the last seven decades, “he added.
“They are cosmetic exercises designed to camouflage their illegal occupation. We call on Pakistan to immediately abandon all areas under its illegal occupation, ”the statement said.
The holding of elections in Gilgit-Baltistan is reportedly backed by the powerful Pakistani military establishment. Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party is backing the move to increase his chances in the upcoming elections.
The choice and prospect of granting Gilgit-Baltistan province status were featured in a recent meeting between Pakistan’s opposition leaders and the chief of the army, General Qamar Bajwa, and the head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed.
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