Strongly rejecting Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s suggestion of allowing an OIC fact-finding mission access into Jammu and Kashmir to assess the prevalent human rights situation there, India said that OIC commands no “locus standi” on the matter and termed Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar’s take on the matter as “propagandist”.
Indian Ministry of External Affairs sopkesman commenting on the development stated that “the OIC has no locus standi on matters concerning the internal affairs of India or the recent incidents on the LoC. We have already clarified that UNMOGIP has no relevance in regard to the latter. The propagandist suggestions made in the Foreign Minister’s statement are neither new nor helpful”. The spokesperson was responding to a question regarding the statement of Foreign Minister of Pakistan at the recently-concluded OIC Contact Group meeting on Jammu and Kashmir that was held in Cairo.
Backing Pakistan, the OIC had asked India to allow an OIC fact-finding mission, international rights groups and humanitarian organisations to visit Jammu and Kashmir to assess the rights situation.
The communiqué had also welcomed Pakistan’s proposal for an investigation by the UN Military Observers Group for India and Pakistan into the recent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC). The communiqué had expressed “deep concerns” over the ceasefire violations.