Sharif again seeks UN intervention on Kashmir

In yet another attempt to internationalise the Kashmir issue, Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif has written to the UN chief for the second time in a month to intervene by sending a fact-finding mission to probe alleged human rights violations in the Valley.

Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Nafees Zakariya said Sharif had sent the letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon apprising him of the deteriorating situation in Kashmir. Sharif sent the letter in response to UN Secretary-General’s call for making efforts to avoid further violence in Kashmir, he said.

“The Prime Minister mentioned that while ‘Azad Jammu and Kashmir’ cannot be compared in terms of the grim and tragic situation of human rights in Kashmir, it remains open to any UN mission for a visit as it has always facilitated the UNMOGIP, foreign diplomats and tourists,” the FO said.

The letter called Indian PM Narendra Modi’s remarks on Balochistan and PoK as unwarranted and in complete contravention of the UN charter.