United Nations, Jan 27: India on Monday delivered a strong rebuttal at the UN Security Council, asserting that the continued use of terrorism by Pakistan as an instrument of state policy cannot be accepted or normalised.
Responding to remarks by Pakistan’s Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad during an open debate on reaffirming international rule of law, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, accused Islamabad of presenting a misleading narrative on Operation Sindoor, Jammu and Kashmir and the Indus Waters Treaty.
Harish said Pakistan, despite being an elected member of the Security Council, was using the forum to pursue a narrow agenda aimed at targeting India. Rejecting Islamabad’s references to a “new normal,” he stressed that terrorism can never be justified or legitimised.
He said Pakistan’s envoy had advanced a “false and self-serving” account of Operation Sindoor, launched by India in May last year against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir following the April Pahalgam attack that claimed 26 civilian lives. Harish noted that the Security Council itself had called for accountability of the perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of the attack.
Describing India’s actions as measured and non-escalatory, Harish said the operation was focused solely on dismantling terrorist infrastructure and neutralising threats. He added that despite threats of further attacks from across the border, Pakistan’s military had sought a halt to hostilities after suffering significant damage to its airbases.
On Jammu and Kashmir, Harish said Pakistan had no standing to comment on matters internal to India, reiterating that the Union Territory was an integral and inalienable part of the country.
Addressing the Indus Waters Treaty, Harish said India had entered the agreement decades ago in good faith but Pakistan had repeatedly undermined its spirit through wars and sustained cross border terrorism. He said India was compelled to place the treaty in abeyance after the Pahalgam attack until Pakistan credibly ends support for terrorism.
India also urged Pakistan to introspect on its own commitment to the rule of law, referring to recent constitutional changes that granted legal immunity to its military leadership.