External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar spoke about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the steps taken by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government, such as removing Article 370, restoring growth, economic activity, and social justice in Kashmir, and holding elections, which were successfully conducted in the Union Territory with a large turnout.
Jaishankar delivered the remarks while speaking at Chatham House in London. He said that only the part of Jammu and Kashmir illegally controlled by India’s neighbour Pakistan was the only thing that was left to attain a complete resolution of the problems in Jammu and Kashmir.
“The part we are waiting for is the return of the stolen part of Kashmir, which is under Illegal Pakistani occupation. When that is done, I assure you, Kashmir is solved”, EAM Dr S Jaishankar’s response to a question by Pakistani journo on Kashmir at UK’s Chatham House. https://t.co/uGchrnvy2l pic.twitter.com/wq7e8Bcutu
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On being asked about the issues of Kashmir, EAM Jaishankar said, “Look, in Kashmir, we have done a good job solving most of it. I think removing Article 370 was step number one. Then, restoring growth and economic activity and social justice in Kashmir. It was step number two, holding elections, which was done with a very high turnout for step number three. I think the part we are waiting for is the return of the stolen part of Kashmir, which is under the illegal Pakistani occupation. When that’s done, I assure you. Kashmir solved.”
#WATCH | London | On being asked about the issues of Kashmir, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, “In Kashmir, we have done a good job solving most of it. I think removing Article 370 was one step. Then, restoring growth, economic activity and social justice in Kashmir was step number two.… pic.twitter.com/uwZpotWggO
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Earlier on May 9, 2024, the EAM asserted that Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is a part of India and said that every Indian political party was committed to ensuring that POK returns to India.
During an interaction with students of Delhi University’s Gargi College, New Delhi, EAM Jaishankar said, “All I can say about POK is that there a Parliament resolution…every political party of this country is committed to ensuring that POK, which is a part of India, returns to India. That is our national commitment.”
He also asserted that the scrapping of Article 370 in August 2019 paved the way for people to think about the issue of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir as well. “Because we have finally taken the right decision on Article 370, the POK issue has come to the front of people’s thinking. The first prerequisite for something happening is that it should be in your thoughts,” he said.
Earlier on May 5, 2024, EAM Jaishankar said that POK is part of India and that people were “made to forget” about it. Responding to a question on India’s plans for POK during an event in Cuttack in Odisha, he said, “POK has never been out of this country. It is part of this country. There is a resolution of the Indian Parliament that POK is very much a part of India.”
He said that India didn’t tell Pakistan to vacate the region during the “early years of independence,” due to which the “sorry state of affairs” continued. “When you have someone who is not a responsible custodian of the house, bahar se koi chori kar leta hai (someone steals from outside),” EAM Jaishankar said. The External Affairs Minister said that people were “made to forget about the issue of POK,” and it had been brought back into their consciousness.
