PNS Alamgir (USS Rodney M Davis) Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel N. Woods via Wikimedia Commons
In yet another setback to South Asian peace prospects, India has put on hold all bilateral exchanges with Pakistan and called off maritime security talks.
The relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors have soured dangerously in recent days with New Delhi threatening Pakistan with consequences of execution of an Indian spy caught from Pakistan’s insurgency-prone Balochistan province.
Islamabad has long said India has been fueling militancy in Balochistan from across the Afghan border.
The maritime security talks were scheduled for April 17, Monday but India officially conveyed to Pakistan that it wasn’t prepared to host a delegation of Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) which was to travel to India on Sunday.
New Delhi claims a Pakistani military court’s death sentencing of a former Indian naval officer, Kulbhushan Jadhav, who, Pakistan says, is a RAW agent, was not the result of a transparent judicial process.
Meanwhile, Pakistan-India comprehensive peace dialogue remains frozen since 2015.
The tension-filled South Asian climate has also led to postponement of Pakistan-India talks over water issues, which were expected to take place in Washington D.C. later this month.
The World Bank is now expected to come up with a fresh set of dates for the talks meant to resolve differences between India and Pakistan over Kishenganga and Ratle power projects in the Indian Held Kashmir.
Meanwhile, in the Indian controlled Kashmir, security forces continue to inflict terror on civilian population that has been protesting New Delhi’s rule since last summer.
Adding a new dimension to Indian state terrorism, forces are using Kashmiri youth as human shield in the Kashmir valley. The new tactic of the Indian forces became public after an 11 second clip, which went viral on social media on Friday, showing an unidentified man bound to the front of an army jeep as it led a convoy through Budgam district in Indian-administered Kashmir.
A Hindi-speaking person is heard as saying that “stone throwers will meet a similar fate” as villagers watch. Budgam was the scene of violence this week as police and paramilitary officers opened fire on thousands of protesters shouting slogans against Indian rule during a local poll. Eight civilians were killed and hundreds wounded in the election violence, including troops who were pelted with stones.
The footage of the man bound to the jeep caused outcry and demands for an immediate inquiry. “This young man was TIED to the front of an army jeep to make sure no stones were thrown at the jeep. This is just so shocking!!!” former chief minister and opposition leader Omar Abdullah posted on Twitter.
The use of civilians as human shields in conflict zones has been criticized by UN and other international rights organizations. The Israeli defense forces have been known to use civilians as human shields in the occupied Palestinian territories. However, this is the first time that video evidence has emerged revealing that the Indian army too is practicing a similar method.
