India has sharply condemned Pakistan at the United Nations for attempting to justify cross-border terrorism by labelling it a “freedom struggle.” The Indian delegation described Islamabad’s stance as “doublespeak and hypocrisy,” asserting that Pakistan remains the “epicentre of global terrorism.”
As per News18 report, during a session of the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, Pakistan’s representative, Muhammad Jawad Ajmal, claimed that individuals attacking India were “freedom fighters” exercising their “legitimate right to resist foreign occupation.”
Responding firmly, Raghoo Puri, India’s First Secretary at the UN, said:
“Terrorism is among the gravest of offences that fundamentally violates the core of humanity. It represents the worst of bigotry, violence, intolerance and fear — and terrorists are the worst of the worst in humankind.”
Puri said Pakistan’s remarks exposed its “doublespeak and hypocrisy,” adding that “Pakistan is a well-known epicentre of terrorism, with established links to multiple terror attacks across the world targeting innocent civilians.”
He also rejected Islamabad’s effort to distort international law, pointing out that UN conventions and resolutions — including those referenced by Pakistan — explicitly state that no act of terror can be justified under any political, religious, or ideological pretext.
Ajmal made his remarks during an interactive dialogue with the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms while Countering Terrorism. Negotiations on India’s long-pending proposal for a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism have been stalled for years due to Pakistan and a few other countries seeking to classify terrorists as “freedom fighters.”
Countering Pakistan’s claim that UN counterterrorism efforts unfairly target one religion, Puri said such arguments were “futile attempts to take cover of Islamophobia to hide its own atrocities.”
He concluded by stressing that “terrorism remains the gravest threat to humanity, and its abettor and aider like Pakistan are the worst violators of human rights.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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