India has used its right of reply at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to respond to Pakistan on issues of religious minorities and terrorism. India’s representative Seema Pujani said Pakistan is obsessed with India at a time when its citizens battle for their lives, livelihood and freedom. “Pakistan representative has once again chosen to misuse august forum for its malicious propaganda against India,” she said.
“No religious minority can freely live or practice its religion in Pakistan today. The Ahmadiya community continues to be persecuted by the state for simply practising their faith… Pakistan’s policies are directly responsible for the death of thousands of civilians around the world,” India’s representative Seema Pujani slammed Pakistan’s MoS for Foreign affairs Hina Rabbani Khar.
Khar had said, “Political expediency has condoned the Hindutva regime to dehumanise the Kashmiri people by falsely equating their legitimate pursuit of rights with the canard of terrorism.”
In reply, Pujani, said, “In the last decade, Pakistan’s own Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances has received 8,463 complaints. The Baloch people have borne the brunt of this cruel policy. Students, doctors, engineers, teachers and community leaders are regularly disappeared by the state.”
“Equally worse is the treatment of the Christian community. It is frequently targeted through draconian blasphemy laws. State institutions officially reserve ‘sanitation’ jobs for Christians,” India added.
India further said that “underage girls from the community are converted to Islam abetted by a predatory state and an apathetic judiciary. Hindu and Sikh communities face similar issues of frequent attack on their places of worship and forced conversion of their underage girls”.
