Doval walks out of SCO NSAs’ meet over ‘new’ Pakistan map

Sandeep Dikshit

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 15

On a day when the Kashmir issue was raised at two international forums, National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval walked out of a virtual meeting of SCO NSAs after Pakistan’s representative sat before a “new” political map that showed Kashmir and Junagadh as part of its territory.

Doval first consulted with the host, in this case the Russian NSA, before walking out of the conference. Later, the Ministry of External Affairs said the display of the map was “a blatant disregard to the advisory by the host against it and in violation of the norms of the meeting”.

“After consultation with the host, the Indian side left the meeting in protest at that juncture,” admitted MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava. It was claimed that India had also raised objections to the display of Pakistan’s new political map in the background during a test call three days back.

After Doval walked out, the meeting carried on with the “new map” of Pakistan which was a constant feature behind its NSA at the videoconference.

The MEA said the Pakistani NSA had “deliberately projected a fictitious map” that Pakistan has recently been propagating.  “As was to be expected, Pakistan then went on to present a misleading view of this meeting,” added Srivastava.

In Geneva, UN Human Right Council chief Michelle Bachelet’s observations on Kashmir were sought to be rebutted by diplomat Indramani Pandey who claimed people in the UT of J&K have been enjoying the same fundamental rights as people in rest of country ever since changes were rung in on August 5 last year.

He also sought a sympathetic view because of the “enormity of the challenges that India faces due to a large and very diverse population of 1.3 billion” and wanted the HRC to act “as our partner in a cooperative and constructive spirit in our endeavour to secure all basic human rights for our people”.

Bachelot, a two-time President of Chile and a victim of torture by its army, had expressed concerns over continued arbitrary detention of many persons.

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan seems to have made up as Pakistan delivered the statement on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC). Its envoy Khalil Hashmi promptly raised the issue of J&K on behalf of OIC.