'India, Pakistan Only Two Stakeholders In Kashmir Issue'


NEW DELHI: In a clear rebuff to Pakistan, India's external affairs ministry Wednesday said that following the Simla Agreement of 1972, India and Pakistan were the only two stakeholders on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir and "none else".

Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin wrote on Twitter: "Following Simla Agreement there are only 2 'stakeholders' on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir - India & Pakistan. None else."

"An approach different to the one laid down in the Simla Agreement & Lahore Declaration does not yield results in India-Pakistan relations," he said.

Akbaruddin's statement came in reaction to Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit saying that his meeting with Kashmiri separatists was "a long-standing practice" and "it is important to engage with all stakeholders".

On the Pakistan high commissioner saying that he met the Hurriyat leaders because they were the representatives of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and stakeholders in the Kashmir issue, Akbaruddin said the Simla Agreement "is a principle which is the bedrock of our bilateral relations. This was reaffirmed in the Lahore Declaration of 1999 between Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee".

He said Pakistan had given assurance to India "at the highest level, that they were committed to a peaceful dialogue on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir and they would not allow Pakistan or territories under its control to be used for terrorism against us".

"We know now, particularly after the Mumbai terror attacks and the manner in which Pakistan has pursued subsequent investigations and trials, that this assurance had no meaning and that an approach that is different to the one laid down by the Simla Agreement and Lahore Declaration does not yield results."

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Source: IANS