Pakistan has shared its "serious" concerns with United Nations over the Indian move to violate the Security Council's resolutions on Kashmir by introducing a controversial bill in the Indian parliament. "Pakistan has expressed serious concern to the United Nations Secretary General and the President of the UN Security Council, through letters by our Permanent Representative in New York, with regard to the Indian government's efforts to introduce a controversial "Geospatial Information Regulation Bill" in the Indian Parliament", Foreign Office said in a statement.
In violation of UNSC resolutions, the statement pointed out that the official map of India has been depicting the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir as part of India which is factually incorrect and legally untenable. "Through the passage of this Bill, the Indian government would penalise the individuals and organisations who depict Jammu and Kashmir as a disputed territory as per the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions," it stated.
It further stated that the letter calls upon the United Nations to uphold the UNSC resolutions and urge India to stop such acts which are in violation of international law. "We have urged the international community and the United Nations to fulfil their commitment with the people of Jammu and Kashmir by holding an independent and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices," it added. However, Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Vikas Swarup, while responding, described the proposed Indian Bill as "entirely internal legislative matter of India.
"The proposed Bill is an entirely internal legislative matter of India, since the whole of the state of J&K is an integral part of India. Pakistan or any other party has no locus standi in the matter," he maintained in a statement issued on his official twitter account. "The government [Indian] firmly rejects Pakistan's repeated and increasing attempts to impose on the international community the matter that India has always been open to address bilaterally with Pakistan," he added.