Daily Times

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has said that India is trying to shift global attention from its illegal Kashmir move, and must not be given any chance to cover up its crimes in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK).

The army chief made the statement during his visit to Bagh sector near the Line of Control (LoC), where he spent Eidul Azha with troops, said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

“India is trying to shift the global attention away from Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir to LoC and Pakistan and for this purpose it can do anything. We must not give them any opportunity to cover up the crimes it is committing in IOJ&K,” he was quoted by the military’s media wing as saying.

Modi-led government earlier this month had stripped Kashmiris of special autonomy by repealing Article 370 of the Indian constitution that the region had for seven decades through a rushed presidential order.

The move escalated tensions between the two nuclear-armed states, with Islamabad downgrading its diplomatic relations with New Delhi and suspending all bilateral trade.

Speaking to the troops during the visit, the army chief said the government had initiated multiple efforts to redress the Kashmir crisis. “Our resolve to solve the Kashmir dispute is as strong as desire for peace,” he added.