External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava
India on Sunday firmly rejected Pakistan's move of granting fifth provisional-provincial status to Gilgit-Baltistan and said that it is Islamabad's attempt to camouflage its illegal occupation. In a strong reply to the Pak administration, spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs Anurag Srivastava further said that the Islamic nation can't hide grave human rights violations and denial of freedom for over seven decades to people residing in these Pakistan occupied territories.
The strong statement by the MEA comes hours after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan officially announced the provincial status of Gilgit-Baltistan. The MEA spokesperson asserted that it is part of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
" I reiterate Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, including Gilgit-Baltistan, are an integral part of India" Srivastava said.
"By virtue of the legal, complete and irrevocable accession of Jammu and Kashmir to the Union of India in 1947. The Government of Pakistan has no locus standi on territories illegally and forcibly occupied by it," Srivastava added.
Gilgit-Baltistan is a part of Jammu and Kashmir, which Pakistan had illegally occupied after partition in 1947. Later, Islamabad divided the region into two parts - Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
MEA Spokesperson also said, "Instead of seeking to alter the status of these Indian territories, we call upon Pakistan to immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation."
