NEW DELHI: India on Thursday categorically rejected Pakistan’s comments at the Asean Regional Forum in Manila, calling them “baseless and unwarranted”.New Delhi slammed Islamabad of using the multilateral platform to peddle “state-sponsored disinformation” and divert attention from its record of sponsoring cross-border terrorism.“It is no surprise that a multilateral forum has once again been cynically exploited by Pakistan to amplify falsehoods, peddle state-sponsored disinformation, and divert attention from its own well-documented record of sponsoring cross-border terrorism,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.“The Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on the same,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in response to media queries.Jaiswal also said India’s position on the Indus Waters Treaty remained consistent, stating that the treaty stands in abeyance in response to Pakistan’s continued sponsorship of cross-border terrorism, including the Pahalgam attack. “IWT will continue to be held in abeyance until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism,” he said.Jaiswal also condemned Pakistan’s practice of propagating “officially sponsored disinformation, often dressed in religious terminology such as the use of terms like ‘Fitna al-Hindustan’.”“This is a futile attempt by the Pakistani establishment to deflect attention from its own internal crises and its well-proven role as a safe haven for global terrorist networks,” he said.He added that Pakistan would serve itself better by “dismantling the infrastructure of terrorism on its soil and putting its own house in order” instead of pointing fingers at its neighbours.External affairs minister S Jaishankar attended the foreign minister-level meetings under the Asean framework, including the Asean-India, East Asia Summit and Asean Regional Forum meetings in Manila over the last two days.Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar led Pakistan’s delegation at the forum. He raised the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, calling for its resolution in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions, and expressed concern over India’s decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance.
