India rejects Pak President Zardari’s remarks on Kashmir

New Delhi: India on Saturday, June 20, trashed certain remarks on Kashmir by Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and asserted that he has no locus standi to comment on internal matters of the country.

“India categorically rejects the unwarranted comments made by the President of Pakistan. He has, in any case, no locus standi to comment on matters that are internal to India,” External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said.

“These comments are particularly absurd given Pakistan’s own abysmal record on human rights, which is a matter of global commentary.”

Jaiswal said Pakistan’s “long history of systematically targeting and victimising minorities across various faiths is notorious.”

“Given this reality, the President’s remarks can only be read as a deliberate political attack, driven by Pakistan’s national policies of bigotry and hatred,” he said.