NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday rejected “uncalled reference” to Jammu and Kashmir by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Islamabad.
In response to queries by media persons, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said China had “no locus standi” to comment on matters related to “internal affairs of India”.
“We reject the uncalled reference to India by the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his speech at the Opening Ceremony (of IOC summit),” he said.
The ministry underlined that India refrains from making “public judgement” of the internal issues of China.
“Matters related to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir are entirely the internal affairs of India. Other countries including China have no locus standi to comment. They should note that India refrains from public judgement of their internal issues,” the MEA said.
Addressing the OIC summit on Tuesday, Wang Yi said, “On Kashmir, we have heard again today the calls of many of our Islamic friends. And China shares the same hope.”
The Chinese foreign minister’s remarks come just days ahead of his reported visit to India.
The 48th Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of OIC, the event where Yi made the remarks, was held in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad between March 22 and March 23, 2022.