"So-called election in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir completely farce": MEA

New Delhi [India], August 4 (ANI): India on Tuesday doubled down on Pakistan on the recently conducted so-called elections in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, urging the global community to pay heed to the atrocities committed by the Pakistani establishment against civilians.
Addressing a biweekly press briefing here in the national capital,Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, "This so-called local election in PoK is a complete farce. The real happening is that of public protests and wanton killings by Pakistani forces. Such hollow exercises cannot hide reality."
He brought to attention how since June, at least 90 civilians have lost their lives due to the atrocities being committed by Pakistani establishment by subjecting civilians to blackouts, intimidation and repression as it seeks to give legitimacy to a hollow electoral exercise.
He said, "Since June this year, at least 90 civilians have lost their lives in the continuing crackdown. The Pakistani Establishment has answered public discontent with bullets, blackouts, intimidation and repression, and now seeks to manufacture legitimacy through a hollow electoral exercise."
He urged the international community to hold Islamabad answerable.
"It must be held accountable, and the world should see through the flimsy veneer of Pakistan's hypocritical lecturing on human rights."
His remarks come as a brutal crackdown ensued on the civilian population in PoJK amid a local election in the region. The election witnessed widespread disruptions, logistical failures and continuing protests on Sunday, casting a shadow over the process and raising fresh questions over its credibility.
Demonstrations unfolded across PoJK and within Kashmiri communities in various Pakistani cities, including large protest gatherings in Karachi, where demonstrators criticised the electoral process and demanded political reforms. According to sources, police detained several protesters and student leaders during the demonstrations.
Global human rights and press freedom watchdogs, including Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ Asia), have issued urgent statements condemning escalating state violence, press restrictions, and media suppression surrounding ongoing protests in Rawalakot and across Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The monitoring groups have raised alarms over the reported enforced disappearances of journalists, restrictions on foreign outlets, and widespread internet shutdowns, demanding an immediate halt to the crackdown and transparent investigations into human rights violations.
Highlighting disturbing reports of force used against demonstrators in Rawalakot, Amnesty International pointed to a pattern of state-led violence and urged an immediate external inquiry. (ANI)