India hits out at Pakistan for raking up Kashmir issue at UN

India has slammed Pakistan for raking up the Kashmir issue in the United Nations, saying Islamabad harbours a deep sense of insecurity and orchestrated hatred for its neighbouring country and its secular credentials.

Responding to Pakistan's raising of the Kashmir issue during a United Nations General Assembly meeting, Counsellor in India's Permanent Mission to the UN, Rajesh Parihar, said on Monday that Islamabad repeatedly utters falsehoods about India.

"I'm constrained to take the floor to respond to the frivolous remarks made by the representative of Pakistan against my country. While such a statement deserves our sympathy for a mindset, which repeatedly utters falsehood, it is important for me to set the record straight,” he said in the UNGA.

Parihar said irrespective of what the representative of Pakistan believes or covets, the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh were, are and will always be an "integral and inalienable" part of India.

“We expect nothing new from this delegation that harbours a deep sense of insecurity and orchestrated hatred for India and our secular credentials and values that my country stands for,” he said.

Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after New Delhi abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019. India's decision evoked strong reactions from Pakistan, which downgraded diplomatic ties and expelled the Indian envoy.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 was its internal matter. It also advised Pakistan to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda.

India has told Pakistan that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Islamabad in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

At the outset, Parihar, in his remarks, conveyed India's condolences to the families in Syria and Turkiye, who have suffered loss of lives and destruction due to the devastating earthquakes.

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake and multiple aftershocks struck eastern Turkiye and neighbouring Syria on Monday, Killing more than 5,000 people.

“India stands in solidarity with the people of Syria and Turkiye, and is ready to offer all possible assistance to cope with this tragedy,” Parihar said.