ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday denounced the Indian authorities’ decision to declare two political and religious organisations of Indian-occupied Kashmir as “unlawful associations”.
Pakistan denounces the Indian authorities’ decision to declare the ‘Awami Action Committee’ and ‘Jammu and Kashmir Ittihad-ul-Muslimeen’ as ‘Unlawful Association’ for a period of five years, according to a Foreign Office statement.
It said the ‘Awami Action Committee’ is led by a prominent political and religious leader, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.
The statement added the ‘Jammu and Kashmir Ittihad-ul-Muslimeen’ was also founded by another notable political and religious leader, Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari, who headed it till his demise in 2022.
“The recent decision increases the total number of outlawed Kashmiri political parties and organisations to 16,” it said.
Foreign Office said banning of different political parties and organisations is yet another manifestation of the Indian authorities’ iron-fisted approach in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
“It reflects a desire to suppress the political activities and stifle dissent. It also shows sheer disregard of democratic norms and international human rights law,” the statement said.
The Government of India is urged to remove the curbs on the Kashmiri political parties; release all the political prisoners; and faithfully implement the UN Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir, the statement concluded.
Earlier in the month, the FO rejected recent remarks made by India’s foreign minister on Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) as “baseless claims” while asking his country to vacate the occupied areas of the region.
In September 2023, the Indian government released Mirwaiz Farooq after over four years of house arrest.
The 50-year-old religious leader had been detained alongside other political figures and thousands of residents following the government’s revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special constitutional status and the imposition of federal rule in 2019.
Last year, Indian authorities declared several political parties as “unlawful associations” as well, bringing the total of banned political parties to 14 in the occupied region. The decision was denounced by the FO at the time as well.
