Leh: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday hit out at Pakistan for trying to internationalise the Centre’s move to abrogate provisions of Article 370, saying that country had no locus standi on Kashmir.
Addressing a DRDO event, Singh asked how India could talk to Pakistan when it kept trying to destabilise the country using terror. “India wants to have good neighbourly relationship with Pakistan, but it should first stop exporting terror to India," Singh said.
He asserted that Pakistan has no locus standing on Kashmir. "I want to ask Pakistan, when did Kashmir belong to you? Kashmir was always a part of India," he said.
Pakistan should focus on addressing human rights violations and atrocities in Pakistan occupied Kashmir, the Union minister said.
He added that US Defence Secretary Mark Esper told him during a telephonic conversation that abrogation of provisions of Article 370 was an internal matter of India. "No country is with Pakistan on the current issue," Singh added.
Tensions between India and Pakistan reached a new high after the Narendra Modi government scrapped Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir and decided to bifurcate it into two Union Territories — J&K and Ladakh.
Hitting out at the Centre, Pakistan expelled Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria and also suspended trade ties. Pakistan then sought to internationalise the issue and knocked on the doors of the UN Security Council. However, it was held that the Kashmir issue must be resolved bilaterally between the two countries.
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