EAM Jaishankar Reiterates Govt's PoK Commitment, Says It 'Is A Part Of India'

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar came on strong on Wednesday, saying that following the revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, which was seen as a difficult decision, "the PoK issue has come to the front of people's thinking" and that all political parties in the nation are "committed to ensure that PoK, which is a part of India, returns to India."

Speaking with students at Gargi College here, the minister said that because Article 370 was deeply rooted in the public imagination due to the politics of the day, people believed it could not be altered. In August 2019, the administration led by the Bharatiya Janata Party revoked Article 370, which granted Jammu and Kashmir distinguished status.

"Take even (Article) 370, people just assume 370 cannot be changed and this is something we have to accept because the politics of the day have driven it very deeply into public consciousness. Now we see, once we change it then the entire ground situation changes," Jaishankar said.

"All I can say with respect to PoK (is) that there is a parliament resolution, every political party of this country is committed to ensure PoK, which is a part of India, returns to India. This actually is our national commitment but I do want to say one thing. I didn't use to get people ask us about this ten years ago, or even five years ago. It is when we have put 370 to rest, now people understand, yes PoK is also important," he added.

Jaishankar said the first prerequisite for something happening is first it must be in your thoughts.

"What has happened today is that because we have finally taken the right decision on 370, in the minds of our own people today, the PoK issue has come to the front of their thinking. As they say, the first prerequisite for something happening is first it must be in your thoughts. once it is in your thoughts, the rest will certainly happen at some point," he said.

On the other hand, a long march and a sit-in are scheduled for May 11 to bring attention to the problems that the people of Muzaffarabad, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, are facing due to the worsening economic conditions there. These groups are political and human rights organizations.

In a joint statement released earlier, the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) and the United Kashmir People's National Party (UKPNP) declared that the march will address issues such as extreme unemployment, rapidly rising inflation, the removal of wheat and flour subsidies, unwarranted load shedding, the exploitation of PoJK's natural resources, and the unfair and special privileges granted to the region's civil bureaucracy.

Stressing that people have not received their wages and pensions, Amjad Ayub Mirza, a PoJK activist said, "And now to sabotage the sit-in, the Pakistani administration has ordered the puppet PM of PoK Chaudhry Anwarul Haq to issue a request for the deployment of Punjab province police and frontal corps in PoJK.