At crucial IPU meet, India to back Portugal, Uzbekistan over Pakistan, Canada

New Delhi, Nov 02: India and Pakistan would face off at the meeting of the Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. This is a body of various parliaments.

Pakistan is contesting to become the presidency of the IPU in the session. It faces a contest from Portugal, Uzbekistan and Canada. India will oppose Pakistan's candidature, sources familiar with the developments tell OneIndia. The official cited here also said that India would be backing the candidature of Portugal's Duarte Pacheco or Akmal Saidov from Uzbekistan.

This would reflect India's diplomatic position. India would be led by Lok Sabha Om Birla leads the Indian delegation, which also has MPs Poonamben Hematbhai Madaam and Swapan Dasgupta.

Meanwhile, India slammed Pakistan for its attempt to accord provincial status to the "so-called Gilgit-Baltistan", saying it is intended to camouflage the "illegal" occupation of the region by Islamabad.

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said India "firmly rejects" the attempt by Pakistan to bring material changes to a part of Indian territory which is under Islamabad's "illegal and forcible occupation" and asked the neighbouring country to immediately vacate such areas.

Srivastava's response came following a media query. "I reiterate that the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the area of so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan', are an integral part of India by virtue of the legal, complete and irrevocable accession of Jammu and Kashmir to the Union of India in 1947," he said.

He said the Government of Pakistan had no locus standi on territories "illegally and forcibly" occupied by it and that the latest move would not be able to hide the "grave" human rights violations in these Pakistan-occupied territories.