India on Sunday rejected references to the country and the Kashmir issue in resolutions adopted at a meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) member states, describing them as “objectively incorrect, gratuitous and unjustified.”
As the Hindustan Times first reported, the Kashmir issue was not on the official agenda of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting held in Niger from November 27 to 28.
Pakistan proposed a resolution on the Kashmir issue to compensate for the OIC’s decision not to put the matter on the agenda, and this concerned issues such as the removal of the special status of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir and alleged human rights abuses. in the country. region.
“We strongly and categorically reject the factually incorrect, gratuitous and unjustified references to India in the resolutions adopted by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) at the 47th session of the CFM in Niamey, Republic of Niger, held from 27 to 28 November 2020 “. the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“We have always maintained that the OIC has no locus standi in strictly internal affairs of India, including the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral and inalienable part of India,” the statement said.
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“It is regrettable that the OIC continues to be used by a certain country, which has an abominable record of religious tolerance, radicalism and persecution of minorities, to indulge in anti-India propaganda. We strongly recommend that the OIC refrain from making such references in the future, ”the statement added, referring to Pakistan.
The Niamey Declaration issued at the end of the OIC meeting also included a reference to the Kashmir issue that people familiar with the developments said was included because of Pakistan’s insistence. The statement reiterated “the position of principle of the OIC on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute for a peaceful settlement in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.”
The people quoted above said New Delhi was not surprised that OIC documents contain customary references to Jammu and Kashmir, but made it clear that it was significant that the Kashmir issue was not being discussed as a separate agenda item on the meeting of the council of foreigners. ministers despite pressure from Pakistan.
These developments come at a time when Pakistan’s relations with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), both key players in the 56-member OIC, are strained.
Saudi Arabia has sought early repayment of a $ 3 billion loan made to the Imran Khan government in 2018 after it was upset by Islamabad’s efforts to forge a new grouping of Islamic countries alongside Turkey and Malaysia. Last week, the United Arab Emirates temporarily suspended the issuance of visas to Pakistani citizens for security reasons. Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi raised this matter with his UAE counterpart during the OIC meeting in Niger, but did not get any positive response.
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