NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday strongly rejected Pakistan’s statement backing a banned terrorist organisation, asserting that Islamabad has “no locus standi” to comment on the country’s internal matters. He urged it to ‘introspect on the systematic human rights violations” it continues to perpetrate instead of “peddling lies and frivolous narratives.“Responding to media queries, ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We categorically reject the statement issued by Pakistan in support of a banned terrorist organization and its members. Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on matters internal to India or its judicial processes.”He added that such remarks were not surprising given Pakistan’s record. “However, one is not surprised that a country, which has long been sponsoring terrorism, has come up with such a statement condoning violence and killing of innocent people,” Jaiswal said.“Instead of peddling lies and frivolous narratives, Pakistan should introspect on the grave and systematic human rights violations it continues to perpetrate,” he added.The response comes after Pakistan issued a statement on judicial proceedings in India related to a banned terror outfit. Earlier on Tuesday, Delhi court sentenced Kashmiri separatist and Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief Asiya Andrabi to life imprisonment in an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case. Her two associates, Fehmeeda and Nasreen, were also sentenced to 30 years in prison in the same case.On January 14, Andrabi, Sofi Fehmeeda and Nahida Nasreen were convicted under Sections 20, 38 and 39 of the UAPA. The three were also convicted under IPC sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups), 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) and 121A (conspiracy to commit offences against the State), reported PTI.Also read: Middle East tensions ripple through Pakistan’s fragile economy- Fuel cost soars, household bills pile upIndia has consistently maintained that matters related to its internal security and judicial actions are sovereign issues, and has repeatedly called on Pakistan to end support for terrorism and cross-border activities.
