Hitting back sharply on the hyper-active Pakistani approach in Jammu & Kashmir, following the killing of Hizbul-Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani, India said Islamabad's actions make it very obvious that it continued glorification of terrorists and sympathising with men who spread violence and kill innocent. While rejecting the decision of Pakistan Cabinet on Jammu & Kashmir situation, India on Friday also asked Islamabad to desist from interfering in India's internal matters.
"India completely and unequivocally rejects in entirety the decisions adopted by the Cabinet of Pakistan on the situation in Jammu & Kashmir. We are dismayed at the continued attempts by Pakistan to interfere in our internal matters, where, we reiterate, Pakistan or any other external party has no locus standi. Continued glorification of terrorists belonging to proscribed terrorist organisations makes it amply clear where Pakistan's sympathies continue to lie," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said on Friday.
The Pakistan Cabinet on Friday decided to observe July 19 as "Black Day" to express solidarity with Kashmiri people over killing of Wani, whom Pak PM Nawaz Sharif termed as a "martyr". "Pakistan would continue to extend moral, political and diplomatic support for Kashmiris in their just struggle for right to self-determination," Sharif said in Islamabad.
However, India sees such statements and actions by Pak leaders as a means to derive political mileage. A large number of Pak politicians and military officials are facing corruption allegations. Sharif's name too has popped up in the Panama paper leaks that showed the Pakistan PM has stashed his undeclared wealth in offshore holdings. Similarly, 12 Pak Army officials were recently sacked for their involvement in corruption. The latest attempt of Pakistan stoking the fire in Kashmir is seen as a desperate attempt by the beleaguered Pak Government to divert both domestic and international attention from its own failures to other issues.
"The self serving actions by Pakistan in the last few days to derive political mileage out of the recent developments in J&K follow planned infiltration and terrorism aimed at India from across the line of Control and the International Boundary. The attempts in Pakistan by various players to ingratiate themselves to the people of J&K in the run up to the so called elections in territories under Pakistan's illegal occupation will not succeed. We hope that Pakistan will desist from further interfering in India's internal affairs and destabilising the situation in South Asia through support to terrorism and other subversive acts. We also hope that Pakistan will respond constructively to India's initiatives for peace and normalising the India Pakistan relationship," Swarup added.