Senator Bernie Sanders, a Democratic presidential contender, has lambasted the Indian move to annex Jammu and Kashmir as “unacceptable” and called for U.S. support for a UN-backed peaceful resolution to the simmering conflict.
“I am also deeply concerned about the situation in Kashmir where the Indian government has revoked Kashmiri autonomy, cracked down on dissent and instituted a communications blackout,” he said.
The senator was addressing the annual convention of Islamic Society of North America in Houston.
Sanders, who has a large following for his egalitarian views, spoke amid continuing clampdown on Kashmir valley.
Tens of thousands of Indian troops have used force to quell any opposition to PM Narendra Modi’s August 5 move to deprive the disputed region of its autonomy.
Human rights organizations have condemned severe restrictions that are now into their fourth week and have diminished food and medicine supplies.
U.S. President Donald Trump has offered to mediate but also suggested that India and Pakistan can address the issue on their own.
The UNSC considered the dispute last month and the dispute remains one of the oldest items on the UN agenda. India rejects any effort at third party mediation and says the issue be bilateral, and accuses Pakistan of backing the struggled for freedom in the area. Pakistan has termed the Indian position as a ploy to evade dialogue.
The widely criticized Indian move to unilaterally change the constitutional statues of the disputed territory – that might upend demographics of the Muslim-majority area – has raised South Asian tensions.
Pakistan and India armies have exchanged fire along the Line of Control that divides the region between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
The Indian-administered Kashmir is a heavily militarized area with basic rights of the people suspended.
“The crackdown in the name of security is also denying the Kashmiri people access to medical care. Even many respected doctors in India have acknowledged that the Indian government-imposed restrictions on travel are threatening the life-saving care that patients need,” the senator from Vermont said.
“Indian action is unacceptable,” he declared unequivocally.
“The communications blockade must be lifted immediately, and the United States government must speak out boldly in support of international humanitarian law and in support of a UN-backed peaceful resolution that respects the will of the Kashmiri people,” Sanders added.
