India Rejects UN Objection to G20 Meeting in Jammu and Kashmir

New Delhi: The Indian government has firmly rejected the objections raised by the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues regarding the hosting of a G20 meeting in Jammu and Kashmir. India asserts its prerogative to hold meetings in any part of the country as the G20 President. The Indian mission to the UN in Geneva expressed strong disagreement with the Special Rapporteur’s statement, accusing him of irresponsibly politicizing the issue and violating the Code of Conduct for Special Rapporteurs.

In a tweet, the Indian mission stated its rejection of the Special Rapporteur’s allegations as baseless and unwarranted. It also criticized him for publicizing presumptive and prejudiced conclusions on social media, considering it a gross violation of the Code of Conduct for Special Rapporteurs.

Earlier, the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Fernand de Varennes, expressed concerns over holding a G20 meeting in Jammu and Kashmir while ongoing human rights violations persist. He argued that such a move could be seen as supporting India’s normalization of denying democratic and other rights to Kashmiri minorities. De Varennes emphasized that the G20 should instead uphold international human rights obligations and condemn the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, rather than ignoring it by holding the meeting.

Meanwhile, Srinagar is slated to host the G20 meeting of the working group on tourism from 22-24 May.