KL Report

New Delhi

Just hours after the Pakistan High Commissioner, Abdul Basit, defended his meeting with the Kashmiri separatists, sating “inclusion of Kashmiri separatists is a must for lasting peace” India hit back saying there were only two stakeholders on Jammu and Kashmir – India and Pakistan. New Delhi asked the neighbouring country to respect past accords on truce.

“After 1972 and the signing of the Simla Agreement by the Prime Minister of India and Prime Minister of Pakistan, there are only two ‘stakeholders’ on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir – the Union of India and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This is a principle which is the bedrock of our bilateral relations. This was reaffirmed in the Lahore Declaration of 1999 between PM Nawaz Sharif and PM Vajpayee,” a statement issued by the MEA said.

India on Monday called off talks with Pakistan in protest against the meetings held by its envoy with Kashmiri separatists.

“Pakistan assured us, at the highest level, that they were committed to a peaceful dialogue on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir and would not allow Pakistan or territories under its control to be used for terrorism against us… We know now, particularly after the Mumbai terror attacks and the manner in which Pakistan has pursued subsequent investigations and trials, that this assurance had no meaning and that an approach that is different to the one laid down by the Simla Agreement and Lahore Declaration does not yield results,” the MEA statement said.

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