India hits out at China for calling reorganisation of J&K as illegal

NEW DELHI/BEIJING: India on Wednesday slammed China for describing the reorganisation of J&K in 2019 as "illegal and invalid", and advised Beijing not to comment on the internal affairs of other nations.

In a sharp reaction to China's comments on the first anniversary of India's decision on J and K, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said China has no locus standi on the matter.

Earlier, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said in Beijing that any unilateral change to the status quo of J&K is illegal and invalid.

"We have noted the comments of the Chinese MFA spokesperson on the Indian UT of J&K. The Chinese side has no locus standi whatsoever on this matter and is advised not to comment on the internal affairs of other nations," Srivastava said, replying to a question on China's comments on the issue.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said China's position on the Kashmir issue is "consistent and clear". "First, the Kashmir issue is a dispute left over from history between Pak and India, an objective fact established by the UN Charter, relevant Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements between Pakistan and India. Second, any unilateral change to the status quo in the Kashmir region is illegal and invalid. Third, the region issue should be properly and peacefully resolved through talks and consultation between the parties concerned," Wang said.