Karachi, Pakistan has officially condemned the Indian authorities’ decision to declare the Muslim League Jammu Kashmir an “unlawful association,” a move that has escalated tensions in the region. This ban, set for a duration of five years, has drawn sharp criticism from Pakistan’s Foreign Office, which released a statement today expressing its disapproval.

According to Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Foreign Office highlighted that the Muslim League Jammu Kashmir, led by the notable Kashmiri leader Masarrat Alam Bhatt, is the latest to face such action. Bhatt himself has been imprisoned for over 20 years. This move by Indian authorities marks the Muslim League Jammu Kashmir-Masarrat Alam as the fifth Kashmiri party to be banned under India’s Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, following the proscription of groups like the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir, Dukhtaraan-e-Millat, and the Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party.

The Foreign Office emphasized the ongoing persecution faced by the leadership of these parties, citing prolonged detention and confiscation of properties as tactics used against them. Earlier this year, the Office of All Parties Hurriyat Conference in Srinagar was also sealed, further demonstrating the extent of the crackdown.

The statement from the Foreign Office accused India of seeking to stifle dissent and disregard democratic norms, international human rights, and humanitarian law. It argued that the actions of the Indian authorities not only violate the principles of the United Nations Charter, which affirms the fundamental rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, including their right to self-determination, but also reflect India’s attempts to consolidate its occupation through harsh tactics, which have been consistently rejected by the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

In conclusion, the Foreign Office called on India to lift the restrictions on the banned political parties in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, release all political prisoners and dissenters, and adhere to the UN Security Council’s resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir.