Foreign Office has firmly rejected assertions made by Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar about Pakistan in Luxembourg, calling them irresponsible and misleading.
At his weekly news briefing in Islamabad today, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said India has once again sought to deflect attention from its own deeply troubling record as a neighbour marked by promotion of terrorism and contributions to regional instability. He said India has instigated terrorism in the region and promoted regional instability.
The spokesperson said the Indian External Affairs Minister’s statement in Luxembourg also constitute a blatant attempt to divert attention from the recently surfaced documentary evidence indicating that New Delhi sought a third country’s intervention to secure a ceasefire with Pakistan during the May conflict. He emphasized that no amount of blustered can obscure India’s fabricated narrative surrounding counter terrorism particularly the Pahalgam incident or its reckless misadventure against Pakistan.
The spokesperson said India has carried out extra judicial killings abroad, interfered in the internal political affairs of neighbouring countries, exported terrorism into Pakistan and provided safe havens to wanted criminals. He said India too has been a source of coercion rather than cooperation for the smaller states in the region.
When asked about the demolition of structures near Faiz-e-Elahi mosque in Delhi, Tahir Andrabi expressed grave concerns on the action of Indian government to demolish Waqaf Properties associated with Faiz-e-Elahi mosque.
He said the mosque stands as a very important symbol of Muslim religious, cultural and historical heritage and continues to serve as a central place for worship and community life.
He mentioned that demolition drive is not an isolated incident rather it reflects a very systematic and deliberate campaign by the RSS-BJP nexus to target and erase the Muslim heritage across India.
The spokesperson said that several other historic mosques face similar threats of desecration or demolition. He said Indian Muslims continue to experience grave social, economic and political marginaliztion.
The spokesperson called upon the international community to take serious notice of this rise in Islamophobia in India. He said the UN and other related mechanisms must play a proactive role in safeguarding the religious and cultural rights of Indian minorities.
Tahir Andrabi also urged the Indian government to fulfill its constitutional and international human rights obligations by guaranteeing the safety and security of all religious denominations including Muslims.
When asked about relations with Afghanistan, the spokesperson said Pakistan does not wish to be hostile to Afghanistan. He reiterated demand that Afghan territory not be used to launch terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
