India Lodges Protest With Pakistan Against “Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly Polls”
A view of a snow covered mountain as daily life continues in the city of Gilgit in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan on March 18, 2024. (Photo by Eren Bozkurt/Anadolu via Getty Images)
India on Friday lodged a strong protest with Pakistan regarding the latter’s plans to hold “General Elections” for the “Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly”, in the Indian territories illegally and forcibly occupied by Pakistan, scheduled for 7 June 2026, as per a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs.
The Government of India reiterated its well-known position that the entire Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, including the so-called “Gilgit-Baltistan”, are integral and inalienable parts of India as a result of complete, legal and irrevocable accession of Jammu & Kashmir to India in 1947.
The Government of India further emphasised that such endeavours by Pakistan cannot mask the underlying issues of grave human rights violations, political repression, economic exploitation and denial of freedom in territories illegally occupied by Pakistan.
The Government of India categorically rejects any attempts by Pakistan to bring material change to areas under Pakistan’s illegal occupation, and underlines that such actions cannot hide the fact that Pakistan illegally remains in possession of Indian territories, which it must vacate, as per the statement.
Meanwhile, PoJK human rights activist Amjad Ayub Mirza has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene on behalf of residents of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), alleging widespread rights violations and increasing pressure on political activists in the region.
According to Mirza, political and civil rights campaigners in Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB) are facing arrests, detentions, and other forms of repression. He claimed that numerous members and leaders of the Gilgit-Baltistan Awami Action Committee have been jailed in what he described as an effort to curb demands for political representation and economic rights.
It is imperative to note that the situation in occupied Gilgit Baltistan is also not satisfactory because people of Gilgit Baltistan, despite the iron fist control of Pakistan since 1947 and systematic brainwashing of the people, there is a strong resentment against Islamabad.
