Volker Turk expresses concerns over HR situation in Kashmir

GENEVA, March 08 (SABAH): United Nations human rights chief, Volker Turk’s comments on the worrying human rights situation in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir have unnerved Narendra Modi-led Hindutva government in India.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk during his address at the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday said that in recent months, he had the opportunity to discuss the worrying human rights situation in Kashmir with both India and Pakistan.

He maintained that he will continue to explore how his Office can assist, including through meaningful access to the region. Turk asserted that progress on human rights, and justice for the past, will be key to advancing security and development in the region.

Angered by Volker Turk’s remarks, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Ambassador Indra Mani Pandey, claimed that the reference to the human rights situation in Kashmir was “unwarranted and factually wrong”.

Pandey said India does not see any role for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in matters that, he claimed, are the country’s internal affairs.