Sharjah-Srinagar flights: Foreign minister accuses aviation ministry of bypassing FO

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Aviation had bypassed Foreign Office prior to granting the over-flight permission for Sharjah-Srinagar flights, which was later refused upon involvement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This was revealed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, while responding to a media query during a joint press conference alongside the OIC's Special Envoy on Jammu and Kashmir, Yousef Aldobeay.

The OIC special envoy is on a six-day visit to Pakistan along with an OIC delegation to visit Kashmir community along the Line of Control (LoC) and prepare a report for the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) to be held in Pakistan in March next year.

"Had the Aviation Ministry taken the opinion of Foreign Office before, which should have been taken, the [over-flight] permission wouldn't have been given. The Aviation Ministry should have taken our point of view...A negligence was committed. When we got to know and we took notice. On our suggestion it [permission] was denied," Qureshi said, adding that Foreign Office had a clear stated position on the disputed status of the Jammu and Kashmir which would remain the same.

Last week, Foreign Office said that Pakistan denied the use of its airspace for Srinagar-Sharjah flight of "Go First", forcing it to take a longer route and fly over Gujarat to reach its destination in the UAE.

The flight, which operates four times a week, did not face any issue when it used Pakistan airspace between October 23 and October 31. However, on November 2, Pakistan refused to give permission for the flight to pass through its airspace on involvement of the Foreign Office.

Speaking at the presser, Qureshi said that India has already lost the "battle of hearts and minds" in the illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

"You have witnessed in the neighbouring country [Afghanistan] to the West what happens when one loses the battle of hearts and minds," he said, adding that he was a seeing a change in the people of Indian illegally occupied Kashmir.

He said that the Indian government had created an impression that the situation was normal again in the valley. "But the way they snatched [late Hurriyat leader] Syed Ali Shah Geelani's dead body dispelled that impression," he said, adding that had the Indian authorities not imposed restrictions, a sea of Kashmiri people would have been witnessed at the late Gilani's funeral.

"The Indian government lacks the courage to let it happen. They were worried," he said, adding that the Indian authorities slapped sedition charges on Kashmiri students after they celebrated Pakistan's win against India in the T20 World Cup match. "The incident showed that the paths of the people and government of occupied Kashmir are different," he added.

Referring to the worst abuses in the occupied valley, Qureshi urged the international community to come forward to stop ongoing serious human rights violations in the IIOJK and save the oppressed Kashmiris from tyranny of Indian occupation forces.

He said that continuous Indian aggression and barbarism in the IIOJK has inflicted heavy loss on the economy of innocent Kashmiris, adding that due to Indian illegal steps of 5th August 2019, Kashmiri people have suffered huge economic loss to the tune of $9.5 billion as it destroyed their tourism and other business activities.

Reaffirming Pakistan's support to Kashmiris' struggle, he said visit of the OIC's special envoy will help raise voice of innocent Kashmiri people at world's major forums.

Condemning Indian illegal steps during the coronavirus pandemic, the foreign minister expressed the hope that the upcoming OIC foreign minister's meeting to be held in Islamabad will become a source of strength for Kashmiri people's voice.

Responding to a query, he said that the OIC has taken a forceful stance on the Kashmir issue, adding that the OIC is the largest forum after the UN, and it has always agreed with Pakistan's narrative.

"This has led to the rejection of the Indian narrative, which shifted the blame for the unrest in Kashmir to Pakistan. Rejection of the idea that the indigenous Kashmir freedom movement is linked to terrorism and acknowledgement that India is no longer a secular state and we need to build on this," the foreign minister emphasised.

Speaking on the occasion, the OIC special envoy on Jammu and Kashmir said his visit is aimed at observing ground reality of humanitarian issues in the IIOJK, adding that on the basis of the ground visits and interaction with the people, a final report will be presented to the OIC's Foreign Minister's meeting to be held in March next year.

He said that the OIC delegation's visit to Pakistan and Azad Kashmir was "very fruitful".

Responding to a question, he said that the OIC had passed multiple resolutions on the Kashmir issue as well as on Pakistan-India to encourage the both to have good ties.

"We have also suggested forming new mechanisms for the resolution of the issue," he said, adding that he was hopeful that the upcoming CFM meeting in March 2021 would lead to fruitful results. He also urged the Indian side to allow the OIC delegation to visit the Indian-occupied Kashmir.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021