‘Modi raising Balochistan issue not interference in Pakistan’s affairs’

Indian Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was willing to attend talks on the invitation of his Pakistani counterpart, the sources said, stressing that cross-border terrorism was central to the situation in Jammu and Kashmir state.

Jaishankar was interacting with journalists at Foreign Correspondents’ Club in New Delhi during which he touched upon a wide range of issues including challenges on foreign policy front and India’s engagement with major powers like US, Russia and China.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi raising the issue of human rights violations in Balochistan during his Independence Day speech can not be seen as interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs, sources here said on Wednesday.

Sources said he, however, maintained that Pakistan has no locus standi in addressing any aspect of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, which is an internal matter of India, except to put an end to cross-border terrorism and infiltration.

Talking about government’s neighbourhood first policy, he said though India has been honest in ensuring development of the region, its politics often come into play.

Furthermore, Bilawal said that Indian-held Kashmir was under curfew since many weeks and several innocent people of Kashmir have been mowed down by the Indian armed forces within last two months. At times, domestic politics of our neighbours pose challenges.

The Balochistan issue is nothing new as human rights abuses have been happening there, the sources said.

Amid rising tension between India and Pakistan on Kashmir, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on Wednesday said that Islamabad has an “attitude towards use of terrorism as an instrumental policy of diplomacy” which makes the Indo-Pak relationship hard to grow.

Earlier in August, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar and Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh also traded barbs at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) Interior Ministers’ meeting in Islamabad.

Zakaria said UN Secretary General has also expressed concern over the situation in occupied Kashmir, where Indian forces are committing state terrorism.

Foreign Office Wednesday said that Pakistan wants to resolve all outstanding disputes with India through dialogue.