Foreign Office terms move ‘grave violation’ of religious freedom, part of systematic harassment of Muslim population
Indian soldiers in IIOJK. PHOTO: ANADOLU AGENCY
Pakistan on Saturday strongly condemned the reported profiling of mosques and mosque management committees in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), terming it a grave violation of fundamental religious freedoms.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “this blatant intrusion into religious affairs constitutes a grave violation of the fundamental right to freedom of religion and belief, and reflects yet another coercive attempt to intimidate and marginalise the Muslim population of the occupied territory.”
“The forcible collection of personal details, photographs and sectarian affiliations of religious functionaries amounts to systematic harassment, aimed at instilling fear among worshippers and obstructing the free exercise of their faith,” the statement read.
Read: Pakistan rebuffs India’s ‘integral part’ claim on Kashmir
The ministry said these actions are part of a broader pattern of institutionalised Islamophobia driven by the Hindutva ideology of the occupying Indian government. The selective targeting of mosques and Muslim clergy, it added, lays bare the discriminatory and communal character of these policies.
The statement emphasised that the people of Jammu and Kashmir possess an inalienable right to practise their religion without fear, coercion or discrimination.
The Foreign Office reiterated that Pakistan will continue to stand in solidarity with Kashmiris and persist in raising its voice against all forms of religious persecution and intolerance targeting them.
The statement comes amid ongoing tensions between Pakistan and India over the disputed Kashmir region, which both countries claim in full but control in part.
Earlier, on Thursday, Pakistani delegate Asif Khan told the United Nations General Assembly, “Jammu and Kashmir is not ‘an integral part’ of India, nor has it ever been so under international law.”
Pakistan brushed aside India’s untenable claim that Jammu and Kashmir was its “integral and inalienable part”, saying that the UN resolutions recognised the Himalayan state as a disputed territory.
Khan said India continues to deny this right to the people of Jammu and Kashmir for decades, a right affirmed by the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, coupled with systematic suppression.
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The final disposition of the State of Jammu and Kashmir is to be determined in accordance with the freely expressed will of its people, through a free and impartial plebiscite conducted under UN auspices, he said.
Since 5 August 2019, the Pakistani delegate said, India has embarked on a course aimed at transforming the occupied territory from a Muslim-majority state into a Hindu-majority territory, in blatant violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and international law.
