By Aarti Tikoo Singh
New Delhi, Dec 19 (IANS): India on Wednesday strongly rejected the "unwarranted and gratuitous comments" made by Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan about India's internal affairs at the first global refugee forum in Geneva.
Khan has been travelling around the world speaking about Kashmir since August this year when India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir state.
Lately, he has been also complaining about the Citizenship Amendment Act of India. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, has chosen to ignore Prime Minister Khan's hostile rhetoric. Instead, Khan's commentary has been rebutted only by Indian diplomats at all international platforms.
Ambassador Rajiv Chander, the permanent representative of India to the UN, while speaking at the forum in Geneva on Wednesday said Khan's comments only "reflected visceral and pathological prejudice against India in addition to being disrespectful of the mandate of the UNHCR and the spirit of the compact."
This, he said, was based on a poor understanding of the responsibility of co-convenership which is to mobilise political support, not politicise, and make a call for party partnership, not partisanship.
It is another dismal attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the internal affairs of India to present an alarmist situation of the region and abuse international fora.
Describing Pakistan as a self-proclaimed champion of human rights, he said recalling that it has shrunk the size of its own minority community from 23 per cent in 1947 to 3 per cent today by subjecting them to draconian blasphemy laws, systematic persecution, blatant abuse and forced conversions.
The Ambassador further said that India was dealing with resultant problem through democracy and due process, concepts which are alien to Pakistan. Citizens of India, he said, do not need anyone else to speak on their behalf, "least of those who have built an industry out of terrorism from the ideology of hate.
"It would serve Prime Minister Khan and his country well if he focuses on the welfare of his own people and country," he advised.