Demonstration held against illegal move in front of Indian High Commission in London

Followed by condemnation across the world, angry protesters chanted full throat slogans against it.

LONDON (Dunya News) – Scores of protesters on late Monday held a demonstration in front of the High Commission of India in London against blatant move by India to abrogate special status of occupied-Kashmir by scraping Articles 35A and 370 of its constitution.

Followed by condemnation across the world, angry protesters chanted full throat slogans against Modi-led Indian government.

Demonstrators, including Hindu pandits and students, were of the view that India has adopted Israeli-style approach to suppress Kashmiris right to their self-determination and illegally occupy their territory.

Earlier yesterday, protests were held across Pakistan as the Khan-led government said it strongly condemned India’s constitutional changes in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir in a bid to fully integrate its only Muslim-majority state with the rest of the country, its most far-reaching political move on the territory in nearly seven decades.

In Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir around 45 km (28 miles) from the contested border between the neighbors, dozens of protesters held black flags and burnt car tyres, chanting “Down with India”.

“The abolition of the special status of Kashmir will not serve its purpose,” said Zahid Iqbal, 35, a migrant from Indian-administered Kashmir. “We will fight, and we will fight with more vigor.”

There were also protests in Islamabad, the capital, and Pakistan’s commercial hub of Karachi.

In a statement, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said it would “exercise all possible options to counter the illegal steps” taken by India.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said it would raise the issue with allies, including the United States.

“We intend to firmly highlight our stance in our meetings with the US delegation visiting Pakistan and with the international community at large,” Qureshi said on Twitter.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said the move “was in clear violation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions” in the region, according to a statement released after a telephone call with Malaysia Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Monday evening.

A spokesman for India’s foreign ministry declined to comment on Pakistan’s statement that the steps were illegal.

Pakistan is playing a key role in negotiations between the United States and the Taliban in Afghanistan, and Khan recently returned from a state visit to Washington, where President Donald Trump offered to mediate in the Kashmir dispute.

India has been consistently opposing third-party mediation on Kashmir, considering the issue one between the two countries.