India incensed at UNGA president's Kashmir remark

Delhi calls Bozkir’s statement ‘misleading, prejudice’

India has lashed out at United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Volkan Bozkir for his recent statement on Kashmir, saying that the latter made ‘misleading and prejudice remarks’.

Bozkir, who was in Pakistan as part of his tour, during a press conference alongside FM Shah Mahmood Qureshi had said it was Pakistan’s duty to bring the issue of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to the United Nations platform with more vigour.

“I think it is the duty, especially Pakistan’s, to bring this [issue] to the United Nation platform more strongly,” said Bozkir, adding that he agreed that the Palestinian issue and the Kashmir issue were of the same age.

The UNGA president lamented what he said was a lack of large political will for the resolution of the Kashmir dispute compared to the Palestinian issue which had more will behind it.

Reacting to Bozkir presser, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement.

Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said: “We express our strong opposition to the unwarranted references made with respect to the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) Volkan Bozkir during his recent visit to Pakistan.”

The spokesperson, who shared the statement on Twitter, called the UNGA president’s remarks related to raising Kashmir issue as “unacceptable”. “Nor indeed is there any basis for comparison to other global situations,” it read.

Bozkir during his press conference had called on all parties to refrain from changing the status of Jammu and Kashmir, saying that a solution was to be found through peaceful means in accordance with the UN charter and UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions as agreed in the Simla Agreement between Pakistan and India.

“When an incumbent president of the UN General Assembly makes misleading and prejudiced remarks, he does great disservice to the others he occupies. The PGA’s behaviour is truly regrettable and surely diminishes his standing on the global platform,” the official statement read.