Pakistan rejects illegal grant of IOK domicile certificates to Indians

Pakistan has categorically rejected the grant of domicile certificates of Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOK) by the Indian authorities to reportedly 25,000 Indian nationals.

In a statement, Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said that the certificates issued to non-Kashmiris including, among others, the Indian government officials under “Jammu and Kashmir Grant of Domicile Certificate (Procedure), 2020” are illegal, void and in complete violation of the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions, and International law including the 4th Geneva Convention.

She said that the latest action is a vindication of Pakistan’s consistent stance that the major intention behind the Indian government’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019 was to change the demographic structure of IOK and turn Kashmiris into a minority in their own land.

The spokesperson said that this has long been part of the RSS-BJP’s “Hindutva” agenda. By changing the demographic structure of IOK, the Indian government intends to undermine the exercise by the Kashmiri people of their right to self-determination through a free and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the United Nation as per the relevant UNSC Resolutions.

Through these reprehensible actions, alongwith continuing restrictions, excruciating military crackdown, extra-judicial killings, arbitrary detentions and incarcerations, and unabated grave human rights violations, India seeks to further perpetuate its illegal occupation of the Kashmir, she added.

“India should know that its suppression has not been able to break the will of the Kashmiri people in the past and it will not succeed in doing so in the future.”

Aisha Farooqui said that the United Nations and the international community must intervene to stop India from changing the demographic structure of IOK by settling people from India in a territory that it has illegally occupied and the status of which remains disputed.

She maintained that the recipients of the domicile certificates must know that India has no legal authority to bring in and settle people from outside IOK. The international law bars India from such illegal actions, the spokesperson added.