POK elections lack credibility : India

New Delhi, July 12 (UNI) India today described the elections held in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) as lacking credibility which could neither be called free and fair nor an exercise in self- governance.

It also said the situation in Gilgit-Baltistan, the other part of POK, was even worse as it had never had even a ''semblance of representative institutions''. Elections had never been held in these areas and the residents did not enjoy the basic political right to vote, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said at a media briefing.

''Once again the entire exercise shows the lack of credibility in the electoral process'' in POK, the spokesman said adding that real power was in the hands of the officials of Pakistan and the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs in Islamabad.

He said that earlier, nominations of 30 out of 31 candidates of the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front--Amanullah Khan (JKLF) were rejected after they refused to sign the declaration of Kashmir's accession to Pakistan.

The 'Azad Jammu and Kashmir' (AJK) Election Commission also rejected 30 nominations of the All Party National Alliance, a coalition of other pro-independence parties of Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Besides disqualifying all political parties and candidates who failed to meet the condition of declaring their allegiance to the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan, from contesting the elections, Pakistan had also not allowed international observers to monitor the election process.

These elections could therefore, neither be called free and fair nor an exercise in self-governance.

The 14-member 'AJK' Council, the upper house of the 'AJK' Parliament, is headed by the Pakistan Prime Minister as Chairman and the 'AJK' President as Vice-Chairman.

Islamabad nominates five members to the Council from the Members of the Pakistan National Assembly and there are three ex-officio members.

The Chairman, along with these federal nominees, gives the Government of Pakistan a majority in the Council as, of the 14 members, there are only six members elected through the 'AJK' Assembly.

''Real power thus, rests with the officials of Pakistan and the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs in Islamabad,'' the spokesman added.

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