India's rulers trying to rewrite history: FO

Spox says Delhi can't be judge, jury and executioner

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan on Friday warned that New Delhi's reckless conduct had brought the two nuclear-armed states closer to a major conflict, condemning unequivocally India's illegal acts of violating its sovereignty.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told his weekly press briefing that India's "jingoism and war hysteria" should be a source of serious concern for the world, as it violated the UN Charter, international law, and established diplomatic norms.

He said that India had been violating Pakistan's sovereignty since May 7, and that Indian strikes against Pakistan had endangered the regional peace and stability. He stressed that South Asia, home to over one-fifth of humanity, could ill-afford the irresponsible actions like the ones being carried out by India.

"Indian actions were a flagrant violation of the UN Charter, international law, and established norms governing the inter-state relations. It is most unfortunate that India's reckless conduct has brought the two nuclear-armed states closer to a major conflict. India's jingoism and war hysteria should be a source of serious concern for the world," spokesperson Khan said.

In the wake of Pahalgam attack of April 22, he said, the Indian leadership had once again used the bogey of terrorism to advance its sham narrative of victimhood, jeopardising regional peace. "We once again reject any attempt to link the Pahalgam attack to Pakistan," he added.

Khan told reporters that international organisations like the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) had called for exercise of restraint during the last two weeks, to which India did not pay heed.

Regretting the Indian foreign secretary's "indecent and undiplomatic" remarks against Pakistan, he said that unfortunately, India's ruling dispensation was trying to re-write history, making a number of absurd claims. "India's founding fathers must be turning in their graves," he said.

"We wish to remind them that it was India that took the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to the United Nations. Today, how can it renege from its own commitments made to the United Nations, to Pakistan and above all, to the Kashmiri people."

Rebutting the Indian foreign secretary's allegations at a special press briefing, Khan said that accusing Pakistan of escalating the situation through the Pahalgam attack was "totally absurd" as India could "not yet produce any credible and verifiable evidence" of Pakistan's involvement.

"The Pakistani forces did not attack Pahalgam, but the Indian forces did attack multiple locations in Pakistan," the spokesperson said. "Accordingly, Pakistan reserves the right to take all appropriate measures in its self-defence."

The spokesperson said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif proposed a transparent and independent probe into the Pahalgam attack through neutral investigators but India chose the path of belligerence and aggression.

"Can any country in the world be allowed to attack another country on the basis of a few social media posts? India is attempting to act as a judge, jury and executioner," he remarked.

Khan told the media that the investigations into Mumbai and Pathankot incidents could not make progress due to India's non-cooperative attitude.