Report: ANI :
GENEVA — Director Kashmir Policy Research Institute (KPRI), Dr. Raja Muhammad Sajjad Khan, has said that Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed territory and expressed serious concern over attempts to alter the demographic character of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing the 63rd Session of the UN Human Rights Council during the General Debate under Item 2, Dr. Raja Muhammad Sajjad Khan commended the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for their continued efforts to promote and protect human rights worldwide.
He expressed deep concern over funding cuts and budgetary constraints facing the OHCHR, saying inadequate resources could undermine its ability to monitor, document and report human rights violations.
He urged UN Member States to provide the OHCHR with predictable and adequate funding so it could effectively discharge its mandate, particularly at a time when human rights violations in several conflict-affected regions require greater international scrutiny.
Referring to the situation in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Raja Muhammad Sajjad Khan said serious concerns had emerged following India's constitutional and administrative measures of August 2019, including restrictions on fundamental freedoms, arbitrary detention and measures affecting the political, cultural and demographic identity of Kashmiris.
He expressed particular concern over changes introduced through domicile and land-related laws, arguing that such measures could alter the demographic character of the disputed territory and should be examined in light of international humanitarian and human rights law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
The KPRI Director also raised concerns regarding the treatment and prosecution of Kashmiri political leaders, particularly Muhammad Yasin Malik and Asiya Andrabi, and called for their cases to receive appropriate international human-rights scrutiny while ensuring due-process guarantees.
He urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue monitoring the situation, seek unhindered access to Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, strengthen independent documentation and regularly brief the Human Rights Council on developments.
Dr. Raja Muhammad Sajjad Khan emphasised that accountability and the inalienable right of the people of Jammu and Kashmir to self-determination must remain central to the international community's engagement with the Kashmir issue.
He said the international community should continue to support peaceful, lawful and rights-based efforts aimed at addressing the longstanding Kashmir dispute.
