India exercised its right of reply in response to the raising of the Jammu and Kashmir issue by the Prime Minister of Pakistan Pandit Shahbaz Sharif in his address.
India on Friday, in its right to reply, strongly criticized Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's statement on Kashmir at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and termed it as "worst hypocrisy".
Addressing a session at the UN General Assembly, Indian diplomat Bhavika Mangalandan said a military-run country, which is globally infamous for terrorism, drugs, trade, and international crime, had "the audacity to attack the world's largest democracy."
The Indian diplomat said, "A tragic incident occurred at this gathering this morning. I am talking about the reference to India in the Pakistani Prime Minister's speech. As the world knows, Pakistan has been using cross-border militants as a weapon for a long time. Passengers, our Parliament, hotels, and pilgrimage sites have been attacked. It has attacked our Parliament, our financial capital Mumbai, markets, and places of pilgrimage. The list is long. For such a country to talk about violence anywhere is the greatest hypocrisy. For a country with a history of rigged elections to talk about political choices in a democracy is even more extraordinary."
Bhavika Mangalandan said, “The real truth is that Pakistan covets our territory and has been continuously using terrorism to disrupt elections in Jammu and Kashmir, an inseparable and integral part of India.”
Warning Pakistan, India said the neighboring country should understand that cross-border terrorism against India "inevitably will have consequences".
He said, "It is ridiculous that a country which committed genocide in 1971 and which continues to oppress its minorities dares to speak about intolerance and fear. The world has been seeing what Pakistan really is. We are talking about a country which for a long time sheltered Osama bin Laden, a country whose fingerprints are on many terrorist incidents around the world, whose policies have attracted the lowest strata of many societies to make Pakistan their home."
Terming Sharif's remarks on Kashmir as "unacceptable", the diplomat said Pakistan would try to hide the truth with more lies.
Bhavika Mangalandan said, "Repetition will not change anything. Pakistan has been continuously raising the Kashmir issue at several UN forums even when it does not get any support for its statements. However, India has said that Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh are and will always remain an integral part of the country.
What did the Prime Minister of Pakistan say?
Sharif, while addressing the general debate of the 79th session of the UNGA on Friday, once again raised the Kashmir issue and mentioned Article 370 and Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani.
In his speech, which lasted more than 20 minutes, he urged India to reverse the decision to scrap Article 370 to "ensure lasting peace." He also asked India to start a dialogue for a peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir issue by UN security resolutions and the "wishes of the Kashmiri people."
Drawing similarities between Palestinians and Kashmiris, Sharif said, "Similarly, like the people of Palestine, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have also struggled for a century for their freedom and right to self-determination."
He also alleged that Muslims were being targeted in India and claimed that the rise of Islamophobia was a disturbing global phenomenon. “The most horrific manifestation of Islamophobia is the Hindu supremacist agenda in India,” he said. It aggressively seeks to subjugate 200 million Muslims and erase India's Islamic heritage."