India has strongly criticized Pakistan’s “divisive agenda” in the UN Security Council, saying Islamabad’s “unique” way of respecting the will of its people is by jailing an elected prime minister and giving lifelong legal protection to its army chief.
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Harish Parvatneni on Monday gave a strong reply after Pakistan’s Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmed raised the issue of Jammu Kashmir and Indus Water Treaty during the open debate on ‘Leadership for Peace’ in the Security Council.
Harish said, “Pakistan’s inappropriate mention of Jammu and Kashmir in today’s open debate is aimed at harming India and its people. A non-permanent Security Council member, who misuses every forum and every meeting of the UN to pursue his divisive agenda, cannot be expected to discharge his assigned responsibilities and obligations.” He said, ”I want to make it clear that India will combat Pakistan-sponsored terrorism with all its might in all its forms and manifestations.”
India also rejected the Pakistani envoy’s claim that the issue of Jammu and Kashmir should be resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people.
“Pakistan certainly has a unique way of respecting the will of its people – jailing a prime minister, banning the political party in power, allowing a constitutional coup by the armed forces through the 27th Amendment, and giving lifetime security to its army chief,” Harish said.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been in jail since his arrest on corruption charges in August 2023 and has reportedly been kept in solitary confinement for a long time.
UN Special Rapporteur on torture Alice Jill Edwards has urged the Pakistani government to take immediate action over reports that Khan is being detained in “inhumane and degrading” conditions, warning that they may amount to torture or other ill-treatment.
The 27th Constitutional Amendment, passed last month under the leadership of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, gives lifetime protection from any legal action to Defense Chief and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir.
Harish reiterated that the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral and inseparable part of India. He also said that India had signed the Indus Water Treaty 65 years ago in the spirit of goodwill and friendship.
Harish said, “In these six and a half decades, Pakistan has violated the spirit of the treaty by imposing three wars on India and carrying out thousands of terrorist attacks.” He said, “Thousands of Indians have lost their lives in Pakistan sponsored terrorist attacks in the last four decades, including the most recent Pahalgam terrorist attack of April 2025, in which 26 innocent civilians were targeted on the basis of religion.”
“It is against this backdrop that India has finally announced that the Indus Water Treaty will remain in abeyance until Pakistan, the epicenter of global terrorism, credibly and permanently ends its support to cross-border and all other forms of terrorism,” the Indian Ambassador said.
