— Top diplomat seeks commission to probe events leading to, and after, confidence vote success
— NA adopts resolution calling on India to restore occupied Kashmir’s autonomy
ISLAMABAD: A night before the National Assembly voted on the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan, who was ousted as prime minister on April 10, one of his ministers had threatened Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to either accept snap elections or face martial law, the foreign minister claimed Thursday.
“I’d like to share with this House that in the hours leading up to the no-confidence vote, I was sent a message […] a threat that either we [the Pakistan Democratic Movement alliance] accept early elections or the government would bring in the military to take control,” he said on the floor of the House.
This threat, he said, was conveyed to him by a minister through a colleague.
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman had initially tried to stop the vote, which was first scheduled to be heard in the National Assembly on April 3, by dissolving Parliament and calling for fresh elections, claiming the vote was part of a “foreign conspiracy” to topple him.
But this manoeuvre was frustrated by the Supreme Court, which declared Khan’s actions in violation of the Constitution and ordered for the vote to go ahead.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman declared alleged the threat was an attempt to foil the vote against Khan which, “despite the provocations of the PTI, was successful within the parameters of the law and the Constitution”.
Khan and his party were still adopting the same strategy where they were trying to create political instability and making irresponsible attacks so that one of two things could happen: early elections without the necessary reforms or that an undemocratic step is taken.
In April, the Guardian, citing sources, reported the message which was sent by a minister to an opposition leader read: “Martial law or elections — your choice.”
“If martial law is imposed on the country, the opposition parties would be responsible for this, as they have been involved in buying and selling votes,” Fawad Chaudhry, then information minister, told reporters.
In his speech, Bilawal called on the House to form a high-level parliamentary commission to investigate the events leading up to April 3 when the vote was blocked, post-April 3, of the night of April 9 and 10, and the events that have taken place to date after the vote was successful.
The PPP chairman said the “attacks on the constitution and the house” should be taken seriously, and an investigation should be held to determine who was at fault.
“Even the Supreme Court termed the previous government’s acts of April 3 as unconstitutional. In the way that the former government tried to escape from the challenge of the no-confidence motion, it was unconstitutional and the people of Pakistan demand accountability,” he added.
INDIA ASKED TO RESTORE KASHMIR AUTONOMY
Meanwhile, the National Assembly passed a unanimous resolution calling upon the international community to ensure accountability of India’s grave and persistent violations of human rights, and war crimes being committed in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The resolution was moved by Foreign Minister Zardari and urged India to immediately halt and reverse unilateral and all illegal actions it had taken in the occupied region and fulfill its obligations under the UNSC resolutions.
The House recalled the resolution of August 6, 2019, adopted unanimously by the Parliament and subsequent resolutions rejecting India’s illegal, unilateral, reckless and coercive actions aimed at altering the internationally recognised disputed status of occupied Kashmir.
The alarming situation in Kashmir is arising out of continued occupation in violation of international law and UN resolutions.
The House expressed grave concern over the series of illegal measures that New Delhi had been taking to change the demographic composition of the occupied territories in stark violation of international law, particularly the 4th Geneva Convention.
It denounced the latest attempt at demographic engineering through a so-called “Delimitation Commission” constituted in March 2020 in the occupied territory aimed at artificially altering the electoral strength of the Muslim majority of the region.
Noting that the Commission’s recommendations had been rejected by a cross-section of political parties in Kashmir, the House reaffirmed Pakistan’s complete support and solidarity with the Kashmiri people.
It rejected categorically the report of the commission that sought converting the Muslim majority into a minority, and further marginalise, disenfranchise and disempower the Kashmiri population in Kashmir, and advance the political and electoral objectives of the BJP.
The House also expressed concern that through the exercise, India was making attempts to further its illegal actions of August 5, 2019, and subsequent measures all of which had been categorically rejected by Pakistan and the Kashmiri people.
The National Assembly recalled and reaffirmed that “the Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognised dispute and a long-standing item on the agenda of the UN Security Council.”
It declared that no facade of elections based on a sham ‘delimitation’ exercise could substitute the legitimacy and indispensability of a free and impartial plebiscite held under the auspices of the United Nations to enable the people of Kashmir exercise their right to self-determination in accordance with the UNSC Resolutions.
It demanded that India must honour and fulfil its obligations under international law, UN resolutions and the 4th Geneva Convention to refrain from bringing about any illegal demographic changes in the occupied territory.
The parliament urged New Delhi “to forthwith end its oppression and widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Kashmir, and enable the Kashmiri people to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination as enshrined in the relevant UNSC resolutions.”
The resolution reiterated the unflinching commitment and solidarity of Pakistan and its people with their Kashmiri brethren and reaffirmed that Islamabad would continue to extend all possible support in their just struggle for freedom and self-determination.
The House asked the government to continue exposing and countering the Indian moves before the international community, and to highlight and forcefully project the Kashmir cause at all bilateral and multilateral fora including the United Nations and the OIC.
Earlier, the foreign minister in a policy statement in the house, said the whole exercise of delimitation in Kashmir is illegal and in contravention of UN resolutions.
The minister said that he has also addressed a letter to the President of the UN Security Council and the Secretary-General of the UN in which he has highlighted the unlawful steps taken by India to change the demographic structure of the region.
He said that he, in his letter, has also underlined that the delimitation exercise was designed to further marginalize the Kashmiri people and pave the way for another puppet government in the occupied territory.
Zardari said Pakistan will continue to reach out to the world to raise international awareness about Indian illegal steps in Kashmir.
