India slams Pakistan at UNHRC, says Islamabad ‘Living in La La Land’ over J&K development claims
India’s First Secretary Anupama Singh flayed OIC for amplifying Pakistan’s position, alleging grouping had allowed itself to echo Islamabad’s political narrative rather than rely on facts on the ground
PTC Web Desk: India mounted a strong counterattack against Pakistan at the 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, firmly rejecting allegations over Jammu and Kashmir and accusing Islamabad of spreading misinformation on the global stage.
Exercising its Right of Reply during the high-level segment, India’s First Secretary Anupama Singh dismissed the charges raised by Pakistan and backed by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), stating that New Delhi “categorically rejects” what she described as baseless claims.
Singh criticised the OIC for amplifying Pakistan’s position, alleging that the grouping had allowed itself to echo Islamabad’s political narrative rather than rely on facts on the ground. She asserted that Pakistan’s remarks were driven by “envy” and maintained that the only outstanding matter related to Pakistan’s continued occupation of parts of Indian territory. India called upon Islamabad to vacate areas under its control that New Delhi claims as its own.
Highlighting changes in Jammu and Kashmir, Singh pointed to high voter participation in recent general and assembly elections as evidence that residents have embraced democratic processes and rejected violence. She said the turnout figures reflected public confidence in governance and development initiatives in the Union Territory.
Taking a sharp dig at Pakistan’s criticism of development claims, Singh referred to the Chenab Rail Bridge, the world’s highest railway bridge, inaugurated in Jammu and Kashmir last year. She remarked that dismissing such projects as fabricated would suggest Pakistan was living in “La La Land.”
She further noted that the scale of infrastructure investment and budgetary allocation for Jammu and Kashmir exceeds the size of Pakistan’s recent financial assistance package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), suggesting that Islamabad’s scepticism may stem from the magnitude of developmental spending in the region.
India’s response came after Pakistan and the OIC once again raised the Kashmir issue at the UN forum, prompting New Delhi to reiterate its longstanding position that the matter is internal and that progress in the region speaks for itself.