Jun 16: The Charge d’ Affaires of the High Commission of Pakistan, Mr Haider Shah, was summoned today and a strong protest lodged on the issue of the abduction and torture of two officials of the High Commission of India in Islamabad by Pakistan security agencies.
Two officials of the Indian High Commission were forcibly abducted by Pakistani agencies on 15 June 2020 and kept in illegal custody for more than 10 hours. They were released only after strong intervention by the High Commission of India in Islamabad and the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi. The two Indian officials were subjected to interrogation, torture and physical assault resulting in grievous injuries to them. They were video-graphed and coerced to accept a litany of fictitious allegations and concocted charges. The vehicle of the High Commission, in which they were travelling, was extensively damaged.
The Government of India strongly condemns and deplores the action of the Pakistani authorities in this regard. This premeditated, grave and provocative action on the part of the Pakistani authorities, preceded by intensified surveillance, harassment and intimidation of High Commission personnel over the past several days, was designed to obstruct and disrupt the normal functioning of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. The attempt by Pakistani authorities to levy false accusations and concocted charges on the officials of the High Commission is rejected in entirety.
These actions by Pakistan not only constitute an egregious violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 as also the ‘Code of Conduct for treatment of Diplomatic / Consular personnel in India and Pakistan signed in 1992 and reaffirmed by both sides in March 2018, but are also against all established norms and practices of diplomatic conduct.
Our grave concerns at the fact that the Pakistan agencies threatened to physically harm more officials of the Indian Mission have been shared. It has been highlighted that Pakistan is responsible for the safety and security of the Indian High Commission, its officials, staff members, their families and properties.
Such continued unilateral actions by Pakistan, aimed at escalating tensions, will not succeed in diverting attention from the core issue of Pakistan’s continued hostile activities and sponsorship of cross-border terrorism against India.
Disclaimer: We donot claim that the images used as part of the news published are always owned by us. From time to time, we use images sourced as part of news or any related images or representations. Kindly take a look at our image usage policy on how we select the image that are used as part of the news.
