New Delhi: India on Tuesday dismissed local elections in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) as “complete farce”.
Accusing Pakistan of using the electoral exercise to conceal a brutal crackdown on civilians in the region, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the “so-called local elections” could not hide what he called public protests and indiscriminate killings by Pakistani forces.
“The so-called local elections in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are a complete farce. The real story is one of public protests and the indiscriminate killing of civilians by Pakistani forces. Such hollow exercises cannot hide the reality,” Jaiswal told reporters on Tuesday.
“Since June this year, at least 90 civilians have lost their lives in the ongoing crackdown, and many more have been injured,” the MEA spokesperson claimed.
“The Pakistani establishment has responded to public discontent with bullets, blackouts, intimidation, and repression, and is now seeking to manufacture legitimacy through a hollow electoral exercise,” Jaiswal said.
The MEA spokesperson called for an international scrutiny. “It must be held accountable, and the world should see through the veneer of Pakistan’s hypocritical lecturing on human rights.”
Pakistan military spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry had recently criticised the Taliban-led Afghan government for its growing engagement with India.
Chaudhry said Muslims should not befriend “kafirs” (non-believers) and questioned why Kabul was engaging with India when their relationship was one of “master and slave”.
Accusing New Delhi of backing terrorism against Pakistan, Chaudhry was critical of Taliban’s governance and said that Afghanistan should not align with India.
Jaiswal said such statements “reflect Pakistan’s insecurity about the positive trajectory of India-Afghanistan ties.”
PoK has been witnessing weeks of unrest, with the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) leading protests over inflation, high electricity tariffs and alleged electoral manipulation during the first phase of local assembly elections on July 27.
JAAC has alleged that security forces opened fire on a peaceful march after blocking protesters from entering Rawalakot, while Pakistani authorities claim armed JAAC-linked protesters attacked police first, leading to a security response.
The election was originally scheduled to be held in a single phase, but later split into three rounds because of security situation. The third and final phase of polls is scheduled on August 10.
