NEW DELHI: India on Tuesday slammed Pakistan for conducting the "so-called" assembly elections in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), terming it as a "cosmetic electoral exercise" which is nothing but an attempt by Islamabad to camouflage its illegal occupation and hide its grave human rights violations in the region.

 

Addressing a bi-weekly media briefing in New Delhi on Tuesday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reiterated India's stance on PoJK, saying that the entire union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas under forcible occupation of Pakistan, are integral and inalienable parts of India.

 

On reports of clashes and election rigging taking place during the first phase of polling in PoJK, Jaiswal said, "We have seen the reports regarding the so-called assembly elections being conducted in the Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. India's position on this matter has been clear, consistent and well-known. The entire union territories of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas currently under illegal occupation and forcible occupation of Pakistan, are integral and inalienable parts of India. The current cosmetic electoral exercise is nothing but an attempt by Pakistan to camouflage its illegal occupation and hide its grave human rights violations in the region."

 

Violent clashes, allegations of electoral rigging, and the killing of political workers have overshadowed the first phase of elections in PoJK, with coalition partners accusing each other of undermining the electoral process, the local media reported on Tuesday.

 

The MEA spokesperson said that the ongoing protests in PoJK are the direct consequences of Pakistan's economic exploitation and denial of fundamental rights to the people of the region.

 

"As we have stated earlier, the ongoing mass protests in the Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, of which you are aware, you would have seen the latest visuals from there, are the direct consequences of its economic exploitation, its denial of fundamental rights to the people and their administrative oppression," said Jaiswal.

 

At least 20 people have been killed and dozens of other civilians critically injured during the Long March organised by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) in PoJK amid an escalating crackdown by Pakistani authorities on protesters in the region. Videos have surfaced on social media from PoJK which shows Pakistani security personnel firing on civilians.

 

“The Long March caravans have reached Rawalakot city. According to information received so far, the identities of 19 deceased individuals have been confirmed, while one person did not have identification documents and sustained a bullet wound to the head; his body is present at the Palandri Hospital. Thus, the total deaths have reached at least 20. In addition, other details are contingent upon daylight breaking and the restoration of communications,” the JAAC posted on X.

 

This march was held after talks between JAAC and Pakistani authorities reportedly failed to produce a mutually acceptable outcome, prompting a renewed call for public mobilisation.