The Congress on Sunday condemned External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s participation in the inaugural plenary of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), calling it an “abject surrender of national interest” by the Narendra Modi government.
The OIC meeting adopted a resolution calling for an “immediate halt to the continuing gross human rights violations of innocent Kashmiris by Indian Occupation Forces”.
‘Hostile resolution’
Speaking to reporters, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said the Modi government had touted the invitation to the OIC as a major diplomatic success. This is the first time India has sent a representative to OIC in almost last four decades.
“The NDA government sold national interest in Abu Dhabi by participating in the OIC and getting such a hostile resolution in response,” Mr. Tewari said.
He said Ms. Swaraj’s visit would lend legitimacy to the organisation. “We would like to ask PM of India and External Affairs Minister: is this your diplomatic achievement that you got India labelled as a terrorist state; you got India labelled as an occupier in Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.
On the OIC resolution asking member-states to provide humanitarian assistance to people of Kashmir, Mr. Tewari said: “Are we not capable of looking after our people? Humanitarian assistance is a euphemism for what? Supporting terrorist activity in J&K”
The MEA has maintained the OIC is merely following a set template and has issued such statements at every OIC meeting on Kashmir.
‘Diplomatic faux pas’
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, in a series of tweets, called the visit by Ms. Swaraj a “diplomatic faux pas”.
In a counter to the OIC statement, the MEA issued a statement late on Saturday reiterating India’s stand on Kashmir. MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said J&K is an “integral part of India and is a matter strictly internal to India”. But unlike previous statements, New Delhi did not say that OIC has no locus standi, and that India rejects the statement.
